


Language Barriers

by Galloping_Monroe



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, Background Relationships, Language Barrier, M/M, Mild Language, Slow Burn, World Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-07
Updated: 2017-05-01
Packaged: 2018-09-30 04:22:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 38
Words: 237,735
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10153565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Galloping_Monroe/pseuds/Galloping_Monroe
Summary: Victor Nikiforov had always wanted to travel the world. When an opportunity arises to spend his final year of university study abroad, he is quick to leap at the chance. Twelve months spent in twelve different countries, he can't wait to see new places, meet new friends, and finish out his degree with a bang. He just didn't expect to fall in love along the way.Yuri Katsuki only applied because his friend forced him to. He's just trying to get through the year, keep his head down and his grades up. Victor has other ideas.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!
> 
> A few quick notes before we begin.
> 
> I spell Yuri Katsuki's name the way it is in the show, so with one 'u'. To cut down on confusion Yuri Plisetsky will be described as Yurio whenever mentioned.
> 
> As English is the only language I know and I don't trust Google translate to save my life, any other languages spoken in this story will be written in English with special designations based on the language the character is intending to use.
> 
> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - Bracketed [like this]
> 
> Thank you and enjoy!

               January – Japan

 

               It was an amazing opportunity, Victor knew that well enough. To get to spend an entire year traveling the globe with others his own age, while still earning valuable educational credits towards his degree? He hadn’t even paused for the smallest of seconds before filling out his application and sending it in. A once in a lifetime chance, his parents had said. The perfect chance to see the world and broaden his horizons.

 

               So here he was, on an airplane flying away from Russia and towards the first stop in his journey. The program was to begin in Japan and go from there. One month in each country on the itinerary. They would be taking their usual course load through online classes while taking in person lectures on the culture and history of the current country they were calling home at a local participating university. The group was supposed to be around forty students and they were all to convene at the University of Tokyo to meet and start the adventure together.

 

               Would he make friends? He already knew there would be one person he already knew waiting for him in Japan, but what about everyone else? Victor knew he was popular enough back home. He had silver hair, all natural somehow, and stunning blue eyes. Pale skin and no small amount of muscle. Often he had heard himself described as bright and outgoing, but for all the ‘friends’ he had in St. Petersburg, he didn’t feel as though he was really close to any of them. Was that going to happen again here? Victor the center of attention, but for what he was on the outside and not who he could be on the inside?

 

               The mix of nerves and excitement made it difficult to sit still. It was only an eight-hour direct flight from St. Petersburg to Tokyo, but it felt like far longer. Trapped in the first class seats his parents had bought him for his twenty-third birthday, Victor tried to stay calm. Tried to listen to music, watch the in-flight movie, stare out the window at the puffy clouds, or strike up a conversation with the flight attendants as they passed.

 

               Nothing seemed to help stop his fidgeting.

 

               By the time he’d collected his bags and made it through customs, he felt like he was going to explode.

 

               “Victor Nikiforov?” Victor perked up at the sound of his own name and turned to find a Japanese woman with a sign that had his name written on it in English, Russian, and what he assumed to be Japanese. Her hair was long and her bangs were pulled back from her face.

 

               “Yes, that’s me.” Victor returned her welcoming smile with one of his own. “Are you here to make sure I make it to the university?”

 

               “I am Okukawa Minako at your service, but you’ll want to refer to me as Okukawa-sensei.” Minako chirped happily as she extended her hand for him to shake.

 

               “Sensei?” Victor thought back to the welcome packet he’d received a few weeks ago. “That means you are a teacher, right?”

 

               “Correct! Someone has done their homework.” Minako winked and motioned for Victor to follow her over to a bank of chairs. “I hope you don’t mind, but we had another student coming in on a flight about twenty minutes after yours so we’ll need to stick around for a little bit longer to pick him up.”

 

               “I understand.” Victor watched as the teacher folded the sign with his name and stuck it back in the oversized bag she was carrying. Her accent was there, but it was soft and she was easy to understand. Victor hadn’t even realized how worried he’d been about being able to communicate. He should have known the participating schools would make sure there was always someone around to translate into a common language.

 

               “Are you excited about your year abroad?”

 

               “Of course.” Victor tapped his fingers against his thigh. “I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t.”

 

               He winked then, and Minako smiled and shook her head softly. She rolled her eyes and tugged her phone out of her bag, unlocking the screen and scrolling through some information that Victor could not translate. Victor followed suit, dragging his own phone out of his back pocket and turning airplane mode off so he could send a text to let his parents know he had made it safely.

 

               He contented himself to pass the time by checking his various social media accounts. He used his camera to adjust where his hair had become mussed from the flight and stood up to take a selfie with the backdrop of a giant poster that proclaimed ‘Welcome to Tokyo!’ in five different languages. Content with how the sixth picture looked, he uploaded it to his Instagram and then sent another copy to his mother.

 

               “Plane just landed. It won’t be long now.” Minako stretched as she looked Victor over out of the corner of her eye. “Then we can get both of you back to the dorms and settled. You’re one of the first to arrive. Classes don’t start for another three days.”

 

               “I wanted to have enough time to sightsee.” Victor offered up as an explanation as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He’d been sitting for hours. Right now he wanted to stand and stretch his cramped legs. “Is that something we’ll be allowed to do?”

 

               Minako nodded. “You’re all grown adults. You can do whatever you like so long as you don’t break the rules of conduct or start failing any of your courses. There are enough tourist attractions within public transportation distance from campus to keep you occupied for weeks, but I would suggest taking someone who speaks Japanese with you if you are thinking of going too far off the beaten path.”

 

               “I’ll keep that in mind.”

 

               Before he knew it, it was time for Minako to pull out another sign from her purse and drag him back towards the customs area he had just left.

 

               Then Victor could get started with the best year of his life.

 

~

 

               The other student they were meeting at the airport turned out to be a small Chinese boy. The sign Minako had pulled out of her purse said he was Guang Hong Ji. He was soft spoken and clearly very shy, although his English was good as well, if not also slightly accented. Victor exchanged an exuberant greeting that was met with a mumbled reply and a deep blush and then they’d been packed into Minako’s car and driven away into the heart of the city.

 

               Victor had spent most of the ride to the university staring out the window. He had never seen so many people in his entire life, not even when he’d gone to Moscow on a school trip when he had been fourteen. Here and there were smatterings of English on the signs, but for the most part everything was just so foreign. Victor had never been out of Russia before and it was jarring seeing the sweep of kanji as opposed to the Cyrillic lettering he was so used to.

 

               Shit, he’d only been here for an hour and he was already being hit with his first wave of homesickness.

 

               Minako had led them to a building on the outskirts of the campus that turned out to be the dorm room where the study abroad students were to be housed for their one month here. Victor had been left alone with another packet of paperwork in his hands and an empty dorm room with two beds.

 

               He sighed as he dropped his bags onto the bed furthest from the door. He was tired, all that wired energy from before had bled out of him now and he was craving a nap, but before he could consider stowing his bags to make enough space to lie down, his stomach let him know that it hadn’t liked the minimal airplane fare he’d been offered on the flight and would like something more solid.

 

               Victor groaned and shuffled through the paperwork he’d been given to find a map of the campus. It seemed like one of the cafeterias wasn’t too far from the dorm. He could gather together enough courage to make a go of it. Maybe with a full stomach, a quick shower, and a nap he would feel a little more like his usual self.

 

               “Okay, Nikiforov. You can do this. It’s just going and getting some food. You’ve done that plenty of times back home. Shouldn’t be any different here.” Victor suddenly regretted his decision to come here a little early. He’d honestly thought there would have been more people who would have done the same, but the only other student in his program so far seemed to be the shy Chinese boy from earlier and Victor wasn’t even sure where his room was as he’d been dropped off first. “You don’t need someone to hold your hand, idiot. People get food here every day.”

 

               The pep talk helped a little and Victor pat down his pockets to make sure he had his phone, wallet, and the key to his room that Minako had given him.

 

               As an afterthought, he grabbed the map, too, and stuck it in his back pocket along with his phone. At least if he got turned around he would have a way to make it back here.

 

               Finding the cafeteria turned out to be easier than he’d hoped. Figuring out how to order something he could eat turned out to be a little bit more difficult.

 

               Victor hovered near the counter, eyes narrowed as though that would help him understand the incomprehensible characters in front of him. He bit his lip and hummed to himself as the girl at the register stared at him with a mixture of confusion and impatience. If she spoke any English, she was hiding it well as no matter how slowly he’d spoken, she still just kept staring and muttering in Japanese, gesturing to the menu and then back to him again as though trying to encourage him to just pick something and be on his way.

 

               Victor was about to give up. He was pretty sure he saw some vending machines at the front of the building. At least a vending machine wasn’t going to judge him while he spent a ridiculous amount of time staring into space while trying to make what should be a simple decision. He took a step back, not bothering to look behind him before he did.

 

               In retrospect, he shouldn’t have assumed there wouldn’t be someone behind him.

 

               In retrospect, he found he really didn’t care as the boy he bumped into had to be one of the most gorgeous human beings he’d ever seen in his life.

 

               Victor turned even as he stumbled, catching sight of dark hair, blue glasses, and wide brown eyes that were the strangest shade of mahogany he’d ever seen. A pink blush stained the boy’s cheeks and he was stammering what must have been apologies. Victor couldn’t look away.

 

               The boy looked up at him and waited, as though he expected Victor to say something. When Victor did nothing more than stare in stunned silence, he straightened his glasses and turned to the girl at the counter, saying something in rapid fire Japanese that Victor couldn’t have hoped to understand even if he had bothered to brush up on the language before coming here. The girl behind the counter rolled her eyes and said something back, gesturing with her hands from the menu and back to where Victor was still standing shell-shocked.

 

               “I was just trying to buy something to eat.” Victor was sure he sounded pathetic, if the Japanese boy even understood a word of what he’d said. Even if he didn’t, Victor definitely _looked_ pathetic, standing there with his hands in his pockets like some kind of lost puppy.

 

               Apparently he made a sympathetic enough picture, as the Japanese boy turned back to the girl and said something else, handing her a card as he did so. She scoffed but punched some buttons on her register anyways. They exchanged a few more words before there was a ringing from the boy’s phone. He said one more thing to the girl, shot Victor an apologetic glance and then turned away as he answered the call, walking away with a quick wave over his shoulder, still speaking Japanese as he went.

 

               Victor had never wanted to learn another language this badly before in his entire life.

 

~

 

               Yuri was pulled out of a deep sleep by the blaring of a Japanese pop song right in his ear.

 

               Groaning he rolled over on the narrow dorm bed and fumbled for the glasses he’d left on the desk next to his bed. As soon as he could see properly, he grabbed his phone, frowning in confusion as he saw his best friend’s name flashing across the screen.

 

               “Hello? Phichit?”

 

               “Yuri!” Yuri winced and moved the speaker away from his ear a little bit. Phichit always had been just this side of too loud for Yuri’s tastes sometimes and even the slight distortion from the phone speakers didn’t do enough to dampen the noise. “Where are you!? I’ve been waiting for like ten minutes now… Holy, shit! You’re not asleep, are you?”

 

               “Not anymore.” Yuri sat up and ran a hand through his hair. There was something whispering in the back of his mind that he’d forgotten something important, but he couldn’t quite pinpoint what it could have been in his sleep haze. “I was up late unpacking last night so I took a nap.”

 

               “You forgot to set an alarm, didn’t you?” Phichit laughed.

 

               “Set an alarm…?” Suddenly Yuri remembered exactly what it was he had forgotten. “Oh, fuck. I was supposed to pick you up from the airport this afternoon. I am so sorry!”

 

               “It’s fine. I can take a cab.” If it had been anyone else, Yuri might have thought that Phichit was just saying it was fine in order to make Yuri feel better for forgetting his promise, but Phichit was nothing if not genuine at all times. It was one of the many things Yuri admired him for. “I know how you get when you’re tired.”

 

               “No, no. The airport isn’t far. I can be there in like twenty minutes…” Yuri looked down at his rumpled sleepwear. He didn’t even need to find a mirror to know that his hair was a tangled mess, too. “Maybe make it thirty minutes. We can stop by your favorite café on the way back and I’ll buy you lunch to make up for it.”

 

               “Deal.” Phichit was now mumbling something in Japanese that Yuri couldn’t quite hear before he spoke into his phone again. “Sorry about that. One of my bags hadn’t turned up yet, but it’s here now. I’ll get started heading through customs and see you soon?”

 

               “See you soon.” Yuri agreed, already untangling himself from his covers and heading to dig through his closet for something decent to wear. “I really am sorry. I can’t believe I forgot something so important.”

 

               “It is totally fine, my friend! Don’t beat yourself up about it. These things happen?” Phichit’s assurances eased the guilt settling in his heart. “We’ve got an entire year full of wandering through airports together to make up for it. Hey, but I really do have to go. Bye!”

 

               “Goodbye.” Yuri tapped the button to end the call and tossed his phone on the bed.

 

               Yuri got dressed and brushed his hair quickly, his thoughts blessedly quiet as he went through the familiar routine of preparing himself to go into the outside world. He locked the door of their dorm room behind him as he went.

 

               It wouldn’t be their dorm room for long though, would it?

 

               Yuri had gotten used to sharing the small space with Phichit. The Thai man had been his roommate for the past two years and had spent more time in Japan than out of it even during the various breaks in the school year. When Phichit had heard about the study aboard program being offered for this year, Yuri hadn’t been able to stop him from applying. Phichit always had been thirsty for some adventure or another. Yuri, on the other hand had not, but the thought of spending the school year alone or being paired with another stranger once Phichit left had settled poorly with him.

 

               He hadn’t thought about what he would do if one had been accepted and the other not. He hadn’t thought about what he would do if he was accepted in any situation. He’d been pretty convinced he wouldn’t be good enough. And then they’d both gotten the acceptance letters and Yuri had been filled with a different kind of worried.

 

               How was he going to travel the world with a bunch of strangers and not have an anxiety attack every five minutes?

 

               Yuri had certainly traveled before. He’d been all over Japan either helping with his parents’ business or competing in regional figure skating competitions when he’d been younger. He’d even visited Thailand for a week last summer with Phichit to meet his friend’s family. The traveling itself wasn’t the problem.

 

               The traveling with strangers was what was causing his skin to scrawl and the butterflies that resided in his stomach to flit around with a fresh intensity he’d never felt before. What would he do if he was in some country and got separated? If he couldn’t speak the language or find his way back to the group? Aside from Phichit, who he knew would love him no matter what, what if the others he was supposed to spend the next year with thought he was nothing more than a weird nervous wreck and wanted nothing to do with him? Who would want anything to do with a twenty-two year old adult that sometimes curled up into a ball crying for no apparent reason?

 

               It wouldn’t be as simple as going back to his dorm and hiding under the covers for days if he embarrassed himself or made a massive mistake.

 

               He decided to cut through the cafeteria on his way to borrow the keys to the school van from Minako-sensei. It was faster than going around and Yuri had grabbed a lighter jacket than he intended in his hurry so taking the time to step out of the cold was tempting as well.

 

               He was so caught up in all the ‘what ifs’ floating through his brain that he didn’t notice as someone took a step away from one of the counters and stepped right into his path.

 

               “[I am so sorry! I should have been looking where I was going…]” Yuri was quick to offer an apology, instinctually speaking in Japanese before he looked up and saw the most beautiful pair of blue eyes he’d ever seen staring back down at him. The breath caught in Yuri’s throat and his mind ground to a halt, all languages completely lost to him as he took in the stranger’s silver hair, pale skin, and refined features.

 

               The stranger was looking at him in confusion. Yuri tried to wrestle his blush and whirring thoughts under control by adjusting where his glasses had been set askew and turning to the girl who was staring at them blandly from behind the counter.

 

               “[Is he okay?]” Yuri wasn’t quite sure why he would ask her that instead of just the man himself, but he looked so foreign. Yuri wasn’t even sure if spoke English or Japanese or some other language entirely.

 

               “[I don’t know. He’s been trying to order something to eat for ten minutes now.]” The girl motioned towards the menu above her head and back at the stranger for emphasis. “[Does he want to order something or not?]”

 

               “I was just trying to buy something to eat.” The stranger sounded sad and confused as he watched Yuri’s every move with wide eyes. Well, that settled it. He was going to have to help whether he like it or not. Yuri never had been one to turn away someone that clearly needed his help.

 

               “[Use my card.]” Yuri handed his student ID to the girl. “[The beef udon should be safe enough.]”

 

               “[It’s your money.]” The girl tapped something into her register and swiped his card, handing it back with a scowl. “[Do you want anything else?]”

 

               “[No, just the udon should be fine.]” Yuri accepted his ID back and was about to turn to say something to the other man, this time in English as even with the odd accent Yuri couldn’t quite place, it was obvious that he understood that language well enough, before his phone went off again, the same stupid bubblegum pop song and Phichit’s name flashing across the screen.

 

               “[Shit, I’m sorry, I got held up. I’m on my way now I swear.]” Yuri answered the call, shot an apologetic glance at the stranger and took off babbling apologies to Phichit over the phone as he went.

 

               He knew he had just been rude, but what were the odds he was ever going to see the stranger again?

 

               And if that thought left a sour taste in his mouth and a lump in his stomach… Well, Yuri was just going to have to deal with that later.

 

~

 

               “Chris! Why didn’t you convince me to learn Japanese instead of French?” Victor was sprawled out on his bed as Chris wandered around what was now their shared dorm room, putting away some of his things. When Victor had applied for the study abroad program he’d convinced his best friend Christophe Giacometti to apply as well. They had met online several years ago when Victor had taken an online French class and had bonded through the Internet, though this was their first time meeting in person.

 

               “You’ve been here for all of ten hours and you’ve already fallen in love with a stranger?” Chris sounded more amused than anything else. He turned his stunning, green eyes on Victor’s prone form and raised an eyebrow. “On second thought, that does definitely sound exactly like something you’d do. You didn’t happen to catch his name, did you?”

 

               “Of course not.” Victor knew he was being dramatic, but he couldn’t help it. He had met an angel that day and his heart ached at the thought that he’d let him slip out of his fingers because of something so stupid as a language barrier. “He just ordered me some of the best food I’ve ever had and then his phone rang and he left.”

 

               “Which leads me to believe you have no way to find out who he was or even where he is.” Chris pointed out. “You don’t even know if he speaks English.”

 

               “So I’ll learn Japanese and go _find_ him.” Victor sat up and pulled his legs up underneath himself. “He saved my life, Chris.”

 

               “He really didn’t. Someone was bound to feed you sooner or later.” Victor scoffed and waved off Chris’ logic. His friend hadn’t been there. How was he supposed to know? “In any case, even if you do find him again, and manage to find someone to translate for you if he doesn’t speak English, what are you going to do about it? We’re only in Japan for one month. Are you going to start a long distance relationship just because a complete stranger bought you lunch? If I knew it was that easy, I would have sent you food a long time ago.”

 

               “Maybe he speaks French? Or Russian?” Victor was only half paying attention now, instead he had grabbed his laptop from where he’d left it on the table next to his bed and was now trying to find a website for learning Japanese. “Hm, I guess that would be too much to hope for. There’s nothing else for it, then. If he doesn’t speak English, then I’m just going to have to learn Japanese tonight and go find him tomorrow.”

 

               “You’ve got it bad… Please tell me you don’t really think you are going to be able to learn an entire language in a few hours.” Chris rolled his eyes and Victor merely shrugged. That was exactly what Victor was going to do. How else was he supposed to track down the man that could very well be the love of his life? “You’ve got almost twenty-four hours before we have to go to the introductory meeting. Good luck.”

 

               “You don’t think he’ll be there, do you?” Victor felt excitement creeping through his body. He hadn’t thought about that. What if the boy was a part of their group? Instead of having one month to get to know him, he could have a whole year to dedicate to romance against the backdrop of some of the most beautiful cities in the world. Could the fates ever be that kind?

 

               “I think the odds of that are astronomically not in your favor, but I suppose it’s not impossible.” Chris admitted.

 

               “So you’re saying there’s a chance?”

 

               “As much of a chance as you learning Japanese in twenty-four hours.”

 

               “I thought best friends were supposed to support each other.” Victor grumbled, tilting the screen of his laptop down a little so he could peer over at Chris better. “Build each other up when you’re feeling down. That kind of thing.”

 

               “Oh, I totally support you making a giant fool of yourself. Don’t let me stop you.”

 

               “Thanks, Chris. You’re a real pal.”

 

~

 

               Victor did not learn Japanese in twenty-four hours.

 

               He hadn’t actually gotten far at all before he was hit with a sudden wave of jetlag so strong he’d barely been able to stay conscious long enough to take a quick shower before falling sleep. When he’d woken up, it was morning and they had twelve hours now before they had to meet in the expansive common area on the first floor of the dorm to meet the other students they would be spending the next year with.

 

               Chris was already up, if still slightly jetlagged himself, and they had ventured to the cafeteria Victor had found the previous day together. This time there was an older gentleman working the counter. His English was slightly better than non-existent and he was far more patient than the girl from before. It didn’t take long for Victor and Chis to walk away with some puffy omelets and coffee.

 

               As they ate, Victor scanned the students coming and going, but there was no sign of the mystery boy who had helped him the day before. Chris smirked and shook his head, but didn’t bring it up again, instead allowing the conversation to stick closer to safe topics like speculating about their fellow students or how they were going to manage their usual class load while still getting enough time to explore whatever country they happened to be in.

 

               Afterwards they took a stroll around the campus, taking notes of the various educational buildings and notating a small museum nearby which could be an interesting place to visit if they were to get bored enough. It was cold, and as they walked, a light snow began to fall.

 

               “I thought it would be busier.” Victor muttered into his scarf. He shoved his hands into his pockets as they continued their aimless ambling. Chris was Swiss and Victor was Russian. A little cold and snow were not going to be enough to send them indoors.

 

               “Regular classes don’t start until next week.” Chris took a long drag from his coffee cup and looked around, green eyes bright and curious “I’m sure this place will be beyond crowded in a few days.”

 

               “Do you think this was a good idea?”

 

               “Walking around in the freezing cold?”

 

               “No.” Victor frowned and shot Chris a look. The blonde smirked and took another sip of his drink.

 

“Okay, I understand what you’re asking. Shit, Victor, I don’t know. It sure sounds like a good idea. You’ve been bitching about wanting to leave St. Petersburg and see the world for years now. That was the whole point of learning French and English, right? If you didn’t really want to leave Russia, why bother?”

 

               “It gave me something to do.” Victor knew that was a half-truth at best. “I am glad I got to see you in person for once though. This whole thing is probably worth it just for that.”

 

               Chris smiled warmly. “I’m glad to finally get to see you in person, too. I can’t wait until we get to Switzerland and I can show you around some. Take you to meet the boyfriend and family. Introduce you to the local nightlife…”

 

               “When do we go to Switzerland again?” Victor ran over the itinerary in his mind, trying to pinpoint the exact month he’s looking for. “Right after Russia… So May?”

 

               “Yes, May.” Chris agrees. “Is April in Russia as cold as they say?”

 

               “It’s definitely not warm, but it’s not the dead of winter any longer so that helps.” Victor pulls the crinkled map out of his pocket and traces a finger across a street printed there. “I think there’s supposed to be a ramen place down the road somewhere. It’ll probably be lunch by the time we get there. Could be fun?”

 

               “Could be.”

 

~

 

               The ramen place had been fun. Spending time with Christophe had been fun as well. When they’d gotten back there had been a few more students from their program hanging out in the common area playing cards. They’d joined them and that had been fun, too.

 

               In fact, aside from the buzzing in the back of his mind that caused him to scan the faces of every single person passing by in the hopes that one of them would be his cute Japanese savior from the day before, he was beginning to lose some of the nerves that had been hounding him since boarding the plane to come here. Worrying was going to do him no good after all. The money had already been spent and he was here now for better or worse.

 

               Just when he was finally cheering up, things got even better.

 

               It happened at the introduction party that evening. Everyone seemed to be trickling into the room slowly, wandering around and picking at the trays of food and drink that had been left out. It seemed that the administrators had gone out of their way to make sure there was food representation from every country that had sent students, and Victor was happily munching on a pirozhki while sharing an animated conversation with Chris and a pair of twins from Italy when the door opened and two new students came in, shoulders hunched against the icy winds.

 

               It took him a minute for his brain to catch up to what his eyes were seeing, and another minute for his brain to confer with his eyes for a second time as the two figures unwrapped thick scarves from around their necks to confirm that he really was seeing what he thought he was seeing. Then he was gripping Chris’ arm tightly and staring so intently he was just shy of actually having his mouth hanging open in surprise.

 

               “Ouch, Victor. What the hell?” Chris jolted as Victor grabbed him.

 

               “ _Chris! It’s him! It’s the mystery boy!_ ” Victor knew he was being rude and that the Italian twins were staring at him as though he’d lost his mind since that last sentence had been said in French instead of English, but he didn’t care. Chris would understand him. “ _Oh my god, it’s really him!_ ”

 

               “ _Which one? The one with the glasses?_ ” Chris peered around Victor’s shoulder to get a better look. He was speaking French as well, much to the obvious disappointment of the twins who were now edging away from them, clearly not pleased with suddenly being ignored. “ _If so, I can see what you mean. He is definitely cute._ ”

 

               “ _Yes._ ” Victor watched as the Japanese boy with the blue glasses turned and said something to his similarly dark-haired companion and shrugged out of his winter coat. “ _Yes, the one with the glasses. It’s him. It’s really him. Does that mean he’s on this trip, too?_ ”

 

               “ _Looks like it._ ” Chris murmured as the Japanese boy and his friend placed their coats on the back of a chair and made their way over to a nearby table where the darker-skinned part of the duo had waved and caught the attention of the Chinese boy Victor had met at the airport and an American student they had yet to acquaint themselves with. “ _I guess you’re regretting not following through with your learn a foreign language in the space of a day plan, huh?_ ”

 

               “ _It looks like his companion can communicate with him well enough._ ” Victor pointed out. Maybe he could translate. That could work.

 

               “ _Cheer up! Someone around here is bound to be able to speak both Japanese and English. At the very least that teacher from the airport does._ ”

 

               Before Victor could say anything, the boy seemed to sense he was being stared at and turned, catching sight of Victor and raising his eyebrows in recognition and surprise. He turned to his friend and said something, gesturing in Victor’s direction before nudging his shoulder against his friend’s and peeling away from the conversation.

 

               “ _Is he heading this way?_ ” Victor’s stomach dropped down into his shoes. “ _Oh my god, he’s heading this way. How do I look? Is my hair okay? What am I supposed to say to him? Chris, what do I do? Help me!_ ”

 

               “ _You might want to stop babbling in French for a start._ ” Chris offered up and Victor shot his friend a potent glare, ready to tell him exactly where he could shove his unhelpful attitude when he realized that he was out of time. The boy was here, in front of him, a slight smile on his face and a bright twinkle in his chocolate eyes that made Victor’s heart stutter in his chest.

 

               “I was hoping to run into you again. I’m sorry about the other day. I was running late to pick up my roommate from the airport or I would have stuck around longer. Did you like the udon?”

 

               Victor was floored. He’d selfishly imagined what would happen if he ran into his mystery savior again. He’d been expecting to swoop with his trademark smile and sweep the other boy off his feet. He’d intend on being calm, cool, and collected. Every bit the suave flirt everyone back home seemed to think he was. Of all the scenarios, having the boy walk over and start a conversation had not been one of them.

 

               Wait… Victor had understood every word the other boy had said. He still didn’t know Japanese, so that must mean…

 

               His crush spoke English!

 

               “You speak English!” Victor exclaimed in the same language as he threw his arms around the boy, who was now sputtering and blushing and halfheartedly trying to push Victor off him.

 

               “Y-yes?” Victor released him and turned on his brightest, most flirty grin. The other boy looked flustered now, face stained red and glasses askew. “I thought that was a requirement for applying for the study abroad program?”

 

               “He didn’t know you were part of the program.” Chris took pity on Victor and inserted himself into the conversation before Victor could let his excitement embarrass himself for the second time. “Hello, my name is Christophe Giacometti. I’m from Switzerland. This is Victor Nikiforov, he’s from Russia and is fairly harmless. Like a puppy.”

 

               Victor felt his smile widen, if that was at all possible, and he bounced on the balls of his feet. He winked and the other boy’s face turned about two shades darker while Victor’s nerves sang and burned. Maybe Chris hadn’t been too far off with the puppy metaphor. If Victor had a tail, he was sure it would have been wagging so hard it would have been a blur.

 

               “Katsuki Yuri, nice to meet you.” Yuri straightened his glasses and his smile was a little more nervous this time, but he wasn’t running so Victor guessed his exuberance hadn’t driven him away. “Or should it be Yuri Katsuki? I guess I should get used to introducing myself the Western way, huh?”

 

               “Yuri!” Yuri’s friend was now yelling and waving from across the room. Yuri winced and waved back.

 

               “I should go back over there.” Yuri hesitated for a moment before taking a deep breath as though to fortify his resolve. “Let me introduce you to my friends?”

 

               “Yes! Let’s do that!” Victor bounced along as Yuri’s side and the other boy led the way.

 

               This was going to be the best year of his life.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Same notes from the first chapter apply. All other languages will be written in English with the following designations:
> 
> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Thanks to everyone who left comments or kudos! I do have a buffer of already written but not completely edited chapters right now and I hope to be able to keep up a fairly quick update schedule. ^_^

January – Japan

 

               Classes had started four days ago and, aside from the one lecture they were required to attend in person for their cultural studies requirement, Victor found that online learning was a much more flexible schedule than he had anticipated. After the first day, he had been patting himself on the back for making the best decision of his life. He would have plenty of time to do his school work and play at being a tourist.

 

               By the second day he realized that his homework load was actually _higher_ than when he was attending scheduled lectures back home and there was no professor to keep on him and make sure he kept up on what was due.

 

               On the third day, he and Chris had stumbled upon an impromptu study group in the library. Victor never had been one to learn the best by attending study groups and he had been very tempted to decline the quickly offered invitation.

 

               He was going to decline the offer, that was, until Yuri Katsuki had appeared from behind one of the shelves, apologizing for his lateness and taking up an empty chair next to the Thai boy he’d come in with on that first day.

 

               Victor had quickly changed his mind.

 

               “One of these days he’s going to figure out that you’re only in the study group to stare at his ass. Not that I blame you. It is a fantastic ass.” Chris was rummaging around in one if the drawers in his desk trying to find his headphones before they headed out to meet the others in the library.

 

               “I would hope so. It sure is taking him long enough.” Victor zipped his laptop bag and slung the strap over his shoulder. “Am I not being obvious enough?”

 

               “You are being plenty obvious.” Chris laughed. “Maybe he’s just not into guys.”

 

               “That would be a tragedy.” Victor placed a hand on his heart and collapsed back into his chair. Chris rolled his eyes and turned back to searching for his missing headphones. “I also happen to know that is not true at all. Phichit told me he’s at least bi.”

 

               “You asked his roommate if he was gay? No… I retract that question. That does sound exactly like something you would do.”

 

               “I had to know how persuasive I needed to be.” Victor stated.

 

               “I think at this point you should go more for being direct than being persuasive… Ah! There they are.” Chris pulled a tangle of thin cords out of the drawer and shoved them in his pocket. “Come on. Let’s go see your boyfriend.”

 

               Victor was instantly on his feet and out the door, leaving Chris to follow behind at a much more normal pace.

 

~

 

               Yuri wasn’t there yet when they got to the library. Victor managed to hold back his dejected sigh as he took up his customary spot towards the end of the table and began setting up his computer and the books he would need to complete the assignments he had due for the day.

 

               There were forty students total in their program, but only eight of them were currently a part of their study group. Aside from Victor and Chris, there was Guang Hong Ji and Leo de la Iglesia, the Chinese and American students. Yuri, who was the most important one in Victor’s humble opinion, and his roommate Phichit Chulanont who was originally from Thailand, but had spent the last two years in Japan for university. The last two members of the group were both quiet. One was a Korean named Seung-Gil Lee and the other was a stoic Kazak named Otabeck Altin. Neither one ever really had much to say, but so far they had shown up every day like clockwork and seemed to enjoy at least studying in the presence of others even if they didn’t want to speak much.

 

               Chris would usually take the chair next to Victor, but some reason today he’d chosen an empty spot next to Leo. Victor thought about saying something, but changed his mind. He had a test that would be opening in two hours that he needed to study for and it would be easier to do that without Chris continually elbowing him in the side trying to show him funny YouTube videos every ten minutes.

 

               “We’re here and we brought coffee!” Phichit’s cheerful tone pulled Victor from out of the text he was supposed to be taking notes from. The Thai man deposited a tray of coffee in the center of the table before plopping down into the chair next to Guang Hong and across from Chris.

 

               “And pastries.” Yuri slid another tray and a paper bag into the center of the table before taking the only empty chair left.

 

               It just so happened to be the chair right next to Victor.

 

               Victor looked down the table at where Chris was handing out coffees with a smirk on his face. Victor wasn’t sure how he’d managed it, but he definitely owed his friend one hell of a favor later.

 

               “Otabeck. Seung-Gil.” Yuri was busy handing out drinks at their end of the table while Phichit grabbed the bag with the pastries and began piling them up on a napkin he’d spread out on the center. Everyone shuffled around as they grabbed their drinks and claimed some breakfast for themselves.

 

               “Victor.” Yuri twisted in his chair to hand Victor the cup with his name on it. “Neither Phichit nor I had your number to ask what you wanted, but I remembered you ordered a regular coffee, black, last time we went on a coffee run so I figured it would be safe to get you that again.”

 

               “That’s perfect. Thanks, Yuri!” Victor’s heart was doing that weird thing where it skipped every other beat again. Yuri had paid attention to his coffee order? That had to mean something, right? “You guys didn’t have to do that.”

 

               “It was no problem at all.” Yuri brushed off Victor’s thanks the way he always did, but there was a faint pink tint to his cheeks and he looked pleased.

 

               “Do you want it? My number, I mean.” Victor knew he might be overstepping some invisible boundary, but maybe Chris was right. Maybe Yuri needed a more direct approach.

 

               “Sure. I guess if this study group is going to be a thing it might be a good idea to be able to contact each other.” Yuri pulled his phone out of his pocket and swiped across the screen to disengage the lock before handing it to Victor to input his phone number.

 

               Yuri said that, but Victor noticed he didn’t hand his phone to anyone else to get their numbers.

 

               “Do you have any plans for this weekend?” No one was paying them any attention as they were caught up in their own conversations, or, in some cases, studiously ignoring the commotion and staring intently at their work.

 

               “Phichit, Leo, Guang Hong and I were thinking of doing the nickel tour of Tokyo.” Yuri held out a hand to take his phone back. “Hit all the typical tourist places and then a few more local spots we like to hang out at.”

 

               “Sounds like fun.”

 

               “You should come with us. Between Phichit and I, we can make sure you always have a way to order food.” Yuri laughed softly and Victor couldn’t help laughing as well, even if the joke had been at his expense. “Ask Chris if he wants to come, too.”

 

               As much as he loved his best friend, Victor did not want to ask Chris to come, too. There didn’t seem to be a point not to, though. It’s not like without Chris’ presence Yuri and he would have been alone anyways.

 

               It’s not like it was going to be a date or anything.

 

               No matter how much Victor wanted it to be.

 

               “Yeah, I’ll definitely ask him.” Victor bumped his shoulder against Yuri’s, pleased when the other boy bumped him back and before turning away to begin setting up his own workspace.

 

               “I’ll text you the details later.”

 

               “I’m looking forward to it.”

 

~

 

               They met in the common area of the dorm on Saturday morning. Victor had always been a morning person and he’d been too excited to lay around waiting for the designated meeting time, so he’d roused his roommate a little early and they were camped out on one of the couches waiting for the others to turn up.

 

               “Do you know exactly who’s supposed to be coming?” Chris asked as he nibbled on a cookie.

 

               “Yuri texted me last night. Basically everyone from our library group and a few people Phichit ran into after class yesterday. He wasn’t exactly sure who.” Victor fiddled with his phone, scrolling through his Instagram to kill time. “He was supposed to ask Phichit and get back to me, but I guess he fell asleep before he could.”

 

               “Oh…” Victor looked up from his screen long enough to see Chris wink at him. “So you two have moved your relationship into text messaging now. Nice.”

 

               Victor quickly looked around the room to make sure they were really alone before shooting Chris a glare and switching to French.

 

               “ _Unfortunately, it’s not like that. At least not yet._ ” Victor rolled his head back against the cushions and stared at the ceiling.

 

               “ _You’ve known him for like a week. These things take time and, from what I’ve seen, he’s pretty shy._ ” Chris nudged Victor with his elbow and waited patiently for him to look over before continuing. “ _If you want I can try to distract everyone else and you can just… Meander off with him. Spend some quality time. Get yourselves lost in the city and then he can come to your rescue again and translate your way back to us._ ”

 

               “ _Do you really think that could work?_ ”

 

               “ _Won’t hurt to try._ ” Chis shrugs “ _I can see it now. All alone in the middle of a big, foreign city. You can’t speak the language or read the signs. Then Yuri reaches out and takes your hand. Maybe buys you lunch again. Leads you home all safe and sound. Could give you a kiss goodnight if you play your cards right._ ”

 

               Victor took a second to picture it in his mind. Wandering around Tokyo until it got late. Coming back to campus in the dark, Yuri giggling at what Victor was sure would have been a witty joke he’d said. Walking up to the dorm and Victor pulling Yuri into his arms, making it very clear once and for all exactly what kind of relationship he was looking for with the other man.

 

               That was exactly what he wanted and he turned to Chris to tell him as much when the sound of feet coming down the stairs stopped him.

 

               The only two languages Chris and he had in common were English and French. Everyone on the trip knew English and a handful of others knew French. The last thing he wanted was someone else to walk in on him mooning over Yuri and word getting back to the other boy before he could make a move. So he kept his silence, only sending Chris a look that he hoped said everything he was thinking.

 

               Chris grinned in response.

 

               “It’s too early….” Victor almost sighed in relief when he heard Phichit’s voice on top of the approaching footsteps. Yes, definitely a good idea to cut his conversation short. The Thai man might not have known exactly what they were saying, but he would have recognized Yuri’s name if he heard it. “Yuri…. You’re usually the one all for sleeping in. Can’t we nap for another like twenty minutes?”

 

               “It was your idea to take everyone sightseeing and your big mouth that invited so many. If I have to be up early to play tour guide, then you have to do the same. It’s only fair.” Chris and Victor shifted on the couch to look behind him at where Phichit and Yuri were now making their way from the stairwell and across the room. As soon as the Japanese man caught sight of them, his expression brightened and he tugged a little harder on his friends arm to get him to pick up the pace. “Look, we’re not the only ones.”

 

               Phichit muttered something in Thai that Victor assumed was not particularly friendly from eye roll it pulled out of Yuri, but both boys took up spots on the couch across from the one Victor and Chris had claimed.

 

               “Where are we going first?” Chris quickly launched into conversation, directing his question at Yuri since he seemed to be the part of the duo that was the most awake.

 

               “There’s a little café down the road that Phichit and I like to go to during exams. It’s not traditional Japanese food, but it is delicious and gives us an opportunity to fuel up on caffeine while we bounce around locations.” Yuri shrugged. “We thought it might be good to get everyone together and see what they might want to see before we set out a concrete itinerary. Especially since _someone_ decided they were going to invite half the class.”

 

               “I doubt most of them will show up.” Phichit grumbled. “It’s called being friendly and outgoing. You should look into it sometime.”

 

               Everyone present laughed and the conversation flowed from there, pausing as more people began trickling down to join their little group.

 

               Aside from Seung-Gil, Guang Hong, Leo, and Otabeck, there was a tall blonde man with a scruffy goatee from the Czech Republic who introduced himself as Emil Nekola and Canadian named Jean-Jacques Leroy that Victor actually found rather on the obnoxious side, but in a group so large he probably wouldn’t have to spend too much time with him if he didn’t want to.

 

               It was the last addition to their little tour group that ended up causing the most problems, however.

 

               Victor had known since the introductory meeting the week before that he wasn’t the only Russian student in the program, but he hadn’t gotten a chance to meet his compatriot. All he knew was that the boy was younger, a first year in university and only eighteen and that he was blonde, grumpy, and possibly slightly feral.

 

               His name was also Yuri, Yuri Plisetsky to be exact, and that was where the problem began.

 

               “We can’t have two Yuri’s. That’s just going to be confusing.” It had been JJ, as the Canadian apparently wanted to be known, who had pointed this out. “One of you should think up a nickname.”

 

               “Oh! That’s a good idea!” Phichit had perked up a little more as the morning wore on and he had tasked himself with getting a group chat going on all their phones before they could head out in case someone got lost or they wanted to break up into smaller groups and meet later. “Which one gets the nickname, though?”

 

               “I don’t mind.” Japanese Yuri was quick to volunteer. Selfless as ever. Victor frowned, though. Something about calling the other man by a nickname didn’t set right with him, even though he couldn’t quite put his finger on why.

 

               “Why don’t we just call Russian Yuri, Yurio?” Victor wasn’t sure what possessed him to speak up, or where he’d gotten the idea for the nickname from, but he’d spoken now and it was too late to take it back.

 

               “That’s a stupid fucking nickname.” Yurio, for that was what Victor had decided the boy was going to be now whether he liked it or not, growled low in his throat and glared at Victor with those sharp, green eyes. If Victor had been a lesser man, he would have been trembling. “Why do I have to change my name? The other Yuri volunteered.”

 

               “The other Yuri was here first. It makes more sense for you to change your name.” Victor knew he shouldn’t be picking a fight. He wished he could have said it wasn’t like him at all, but he had always taken pleasure in teasing others. Especially when they sputtered and growled and acted like a surly teenager. It was a weakness of his.

 

               “Victor has a point. The other Yuri was here first.” Chris was quick to jump to his friend’s defense with a wink and a smile. “I don’t see anything wrong with the name Yurio. It’s kind of cute.”

 

               “I don’t care when the other Yuri got here, I don’t want to change my name. That’s literally the dumbest fucking thing I’ve ever heard.”

 

               “The other Yuri is standing right here and is perfectly capable of speaking for himself.” Yuri cut in before Victor could poke at Yurio’s pride any further. “I really don’t mind using a nickname. So long as that nickname isn’t ‘The Other Yuri’. That one’s kind of a mouthful.”

 

               “If Japanese Yuri says he doesn’t mind changing his name instead, then we should just let him do it and get on with things.” JJ crossed his arms over his chest and tapped a foot impatiently. “Everyone gets their way.”

 

               Yurio narrowed his eyes and turned the full force of his ire on the Canadian now. If Victor thought the Russian had been scary mad before, that paled in comparison to right now.

 

               “It’s not a bad name… Yurio. I kind of like it.”

 

Victor jumped a little as he realized that last input had come from Otabeck. He was pretty sure that was the first time he’d heard the other man speak even though he’d been studying across a table from him for the past three days.

 

               “Fine, I’ll be Yurio. Let’s just go, for fuck’s sake.”

 

               Everyone exchanged confused looks at Yurio’s sudden about face. At the risk of starting another argument, there was a silent agreement between all parties to just let it go as they followed Yurio out the door, the blonde spitting Russian curses as he went.

 

               “What’s he saying?” Chris whispered as they fell into step towards the back of the group.

 

               “Trust me… You do not want me to translate that.”

 

               “Duly noted…”

 

~

 

               They leave that next Tuesday to spend three days in Kyoto. All forty students, plus their luggage, piled into a train and set out for their next destination.

 

               The day they had all gone on their tour, Victor hadn’t gotten the chance to get Yuri away from the group. Any hints he dropped went right over the other man’s head as it seemed as though Yuri was determined to play the perfect host and tour guide. He moved around the fringes of the group, answering questions and translating signs and text that Phichit struggled with. Victor had definitely had a good time. There had been much to see and he’d quite enjoyed their trip through Shibuya and he never was one to turn down an opportunity for some shopping, but Victor still couldn’t help but wish the group had been smaller, that Yuri hadn’t been constantly pulled away as soon as Victor had been able to get his attention…

 

               In the library on Monday Yuri had sat next to him again.

 

               In the train on the way to Kyoto Yuri had taken the seat at Victor’s right side.

 

               In the large room where all forty students and the futons they had been provided were supposed to be staying for the two nights of their trip, Yuri’s futon is positioned above Victor’s so that they are head to head.

 

               It could be a coincidence. It could just be that Yuri’s proximity is due to Victor and Chris deciding they will be permanent members of the study group. That it is all incidental to the fact that Yuri rarely goes anywhere without Phichit and the Thai man is vicious when it comes to organizing get-togethers with the group chat he’d created.

 

               Victor would like to think it meant something more.

 

               “This place seems ridiculously well prepared to house a bunch of young adults on a school trip.” Chris had taken the futon on Victor’s right and he was sprawled out there now as the others milled about, setting themselves up for the night.

 

               “Group trips are like a rite of passage in Japan. Right, Yuri?” Phichit had taken the futon next to his friend and was busy arranging some pillows and blankets he’d brought with him on the trip.

 

               “Yes, I’ve been on several myself in middle and high school. Businesses often book rooms like these for work trips as well. It’s supposed to build teamwork and community within your school or workplace.” Yuri explained patiently. “I’ve actually been to Kyoto twice on trips just like this… Although, I don’t think we ever stayed here before. I’m pretty sure we aren’t going to be required to participate in teambuilding activities either.”

 

               “I hope not. I would hate to have to be on a team with any of you idiots.” Yurio had taken the futon on Victor’s other side for some reason and the Russian teen was currently beating on his pillow as though he could punch it into a fluffier state. Victor wasn’t entirely sure why the boy bothered to hang around when it was painfully clear he carried a firm disdain for humanity in general, but he hadn’t attempted to pry. Even with his constant stream of insults, Yurio was decent enough company and it was nice to have someone to speak to in his native tongue from time to time.

 

               “Oi! Beka! Over here!” Yurio was on his knees now and waving to draw the Kazak’s attention to the empty futon beside him from across the room. A pair of dark eyebrows lifted, but Otabeck began to pick his way across the room anyways, dropping his bags on the futon Yurio had apparently saved for him. “You’re still going to look over my English essay tomorrow, right?”

 

               “Of course. I promised I would.” Otabeck stated plainly.

 

               Victor and Chris exchanged an amused glance, but knew better than to say anything out loud. Instead Victor rolled over onto his stomach and watched Yuri speak to Phichit. They were speaking in Japanese now so Victor wasn’t sure exactly what they were talking about, but he never did grow tired of watching Yuri do much of anything.

 

               When he spoke he would move his hands sometimes to punctuate particularly important phrases. He would blush and stammer when Phichit would get excited over something he said, and Victor could literally spend the rest of his life listening to Yuri read the phonebook in Japanese if offered the chance. While the other man’s soft accent was pleasing to the ear when speaking English, there was just something about the way the sounds of his first language rolled from those plush lips that left Victor enthralled.

 

               Chris had not been joking that day he said Victor had it bad. In fact, he might have been understating the depth of Victor’s attraction. He didn’t just have it bad, he was _gone_. Completely and totally gone.

 

               Usually that would have upset him. The thought that one person could have so much control over his emotions. Usually he would have been backing away and putting distance between himself and the other person in an effort to save his heart.

 

               For the first time in a long time, he found he couldn’t even care less about his heart.

 

               “ _What do you think they are talking about?_ ” Chris had pitched his voice low and had chosen French for this conversation.

 

               “ _I wish I knew._ ” Victor sighed lightly and rested his chin on his folded arms, staring up with what he knew must have been pure adoration on his face. Why was it that Yuri never thought to look at him at the right time? All it would have taken was a quick glance right this second and he would have known all there was to know about Victor’s infatuation.

 

               “ _Why don’t you ask him for lessons in basic Japanese?_ ” Chris suggested with a wink and a smile. “ _You could spend more one on one time with him and then you’ll know what he’s saying when he’s talking about you behind your back._ ”

 

               “ _Do you really think they’re talking about me?_ ” Victor perked up at that thought.

 

               Before Chris could respond, Victor was pulled out of his thoughts by Yurio kicking him the hip and growling in Russian under his breath.

 

               “ **Do you even realize how disgusting you look right now?** ” Victor blinked twice as his brain struggled with switching from the smooth sounds and lilts of French and into the more guttural Russian dialect. “ **You’re drooling.** ”

 

               “ **Am I?** ” Victor touched the corner of his lips absentmindedly, frowning as he did feel slightly damp. “ **Hmmm… That’s new.** ”

 

               “ **It’s really not. He must be completely blind if he hasn’t noticed your ridiculous fawning by now. Someone should take him to get the prescription on his lenses redone.** ” Yurio huffed and flopped onto his back. “ **This year is going to feel like forever if we have to watch you dumbasses circle each other the whole time. Do all of us a fucking favor and ask him out already.** ”

 

               “ _What’s he saying?_ ” Now Victor was being nudged on his other side by Chris’ elbow. He was definitely regretting his choice of sleeping arrangements.

 

               Letting out a heavy sigh, Victor turned his head and switched back to French. “ _He wants me to just ask Yuri out. As if it could ever be that simple._ ”

 

               “ _Why can’t it be, though?_ ”

 

               “Can we all just speak fucking English?” Yurio shouted and everyone close to them turned their heads, including Phichit and Yuri, the latter of which turning bright red.

 

               “S-Sorry!” Yuri seemed awfully jumpy, even for him. Victor now wanted to know more than ever what they had been talking about now. “That was so rude of us. English from now on is fine.”

 

               “What were you talking about anyways?” Victor pushed himself up so that he was now lying on his stomach with his torso supported by his elbows. He quirked his head to the side and shot an innocent glance in Yuri’s direction.

 

               “N-Nothing.” Yuri’s stammering and inability to look Victor in the eye said it was clearly something, but before Victor could press, Yuri stumbled on. “Phichit and I were just discussing a good place to meet up to study after the guided tour of the city in the morning. I think there’s a tea house not too far from here that has an outside deck with kotatsu tables and heaters that could be an option. They’re supposed to have an amazing variety of teas…”

 

               “Are you going to invite the whole fucking class again?” Yurio grumbles from his spot, still lying on his back with his phone being held above his face now.

 

               “If you don’t want to come, you don’t have to.” Phichit points out. “We’ve always left the group open for whoever needs help.”

 

               “I thought you wanted me to look at your English paper.” Otabeck had finished settling his things and was plugging in a pair of headphones to his laptop.

 

               “Fine, I’ll go. But only because the damn paper is due tomorrow before midnight St. Petersburg time.” Yurio kicked out at Victor one last time (Why? What had he done to deserve it this time? Was it too late to switch spots with Chris?), before settling in as well.

 

               It took a few hours for everyone to settle down enough to begin to drift off to sleep. Finally all the whispers died down and the soft sound of forty people breathing deeply filled the room instead.

 

               Victor shifted around on the thick mattress pad beneath him, not entirely used to sleeping on the floor. He inhaled sharply as his last stretch had him catching a shin against the suitcase at the foot of his futon.

 

               There was a rustling from above his head and Victor craned his neck in time to see Yuri lift his head and look over at him, eyes clouded by exhaustion and… Concern?

 

               “Victor? Are you okay?” Victor’s breath caught in his throat. Yuri’s voice was soft. He always had this way of rolling out the ‘r’ at the end of Victor’s name, but half-asleep, it was much more pronounced. His hair was mussed and falling into eyes that weren’t hidden behind lenses for once. Victor suppressed a shiver that tried to run up his spine at the sound of his voice and the sight of a peek of smooth skin under the stretch out collar of his sleep shirt.

 

               “I’m fine. Kicked my suitcase. I’ll survive.”

 

               “Oh… Okay.”

 

               Silence and Yuri’s head falling back down onto his pillow. Victor held his breath, afraid to move in case he disturbed Yuri again. The silence stretched on so long he just knew the other boy was now asleep. Allowing himself to relax, he began to drift off.

 

               It was there, on that thin edge between wakefulness and oblivion that Victor thought he heard something else whispered into the darkness, but in the morning he was convinced it had just been nothing more than a dream.

 

               “Goodnight, Victor.”

 

~

 

               “[Phichit, I am not going to talk about this with him literally one meter away from us.]” Yuri was speaking Japanese and he knew Victor couldn’t understand a word he was saying, but he still felt nervous.

 

               “[They speak in French all the time when we’re around. Just don’t say his name and no one will notice. Besides, this is important.]” Phichit had been trying to corner Yuri alone since they had left Tokyo that afternoon, but Yuri hadn’t been cooperating. He knew exactly what his best friend was going to talk to him about and he did not want to discuss it earlier. He still didn’t want to discuss it now, but it seemed like his luck had finally run out. “[See? They’re speaking French right now.]”

 

               “[I’ve already told you a million times, I’m not asking him to come home with me this weekend.]” Yuri glanced out of the corner of his eye to where Chris and Victor were indeed carrying on a conversation in French while Yurio glared at the back of Victor’s head.

 

               “[Why not? What’s the worst that could happen? He could say ‘no’?]”

 

               “[No, he could say ‘yes’ just to be polite and then be miserable the entire time.]” Yuri pushed his glasses up his nose from where they had slipped down while he’d been sorting through his bedding. “[Or he could say ‘yes’ and not be bored, but then I’ll do something super embarrassing and then he’ll never speak to me again. That would definitely be worse.]”

 

               “[I’m pretty sure that’s not going to happen. Just look at him! He’s totally head over heels for you.]” Phichit jerked his head in Victor’s general direction and Yuri risked a quick glance out of the corner of his eye to see Victor was staring at him with an oddly serene look on his face. He felt his cheeks heat up and he quickly focused on Phichit’s face in order to counteract whatever hormones always floated to the surface whenever Victor was around. “[Look, I feel bad about saying I would go back with you this weekend and then bailing, but everyone wants to go to the music festival and they’re going to need someone to translate and make sure they aren’t getting screwed buying food and merchandise. I’m doing a public service really.]”

 

               “[I am perfectly capable of visiting my family without someone accompanying me to hold my hand.]” Yuri shot Phichit a stern look. It went ignored, per usual.

 

               “[Come on! He’s been begging to do something more authentic all week. He’d love your parent’s hot spring. He’s already said he’s not interested in going to the festival. You wouldn’t want to leave him all alone in an empty dorm back in Tokyo. What if he tries to go out for food and has issues again?]” Phichit laughed and Yuri couldn’t help but laugh a little as well. “[What did I tell you about feeding strays, Yuri? They follow you home and then they’re your responsibility.]”

 

               “[He’s not a dog… He’s a person…]”

 

               “[Just ask him!]”

 

               Yuri bit his lip. He knew Phichit had a point. Victor had been dropping hints that he wanted to see something more traditional, and there wasn’t much that was more traditional than his parent’s onsen. Maybe… Just maybe Victor would say ‘yes’ and actually enjoy himself…

 

               He was about to tell Phichit that he would think about it more when Yurio’s yelling brought him back into the present.

 

               “Can we all just speak fucking English?”

 

               “S-Sorry!”

 

~

 

               The tea house turned out to be a good idea.

 

               It was still cold out, but the deck was sheltered from the wind and between that, the space heaters and the heated tables, which Victor was going to be buying for his cold apartment back home as soon as he could, they were pleasantly warm.

 

               The company wasn’t too bad either. It was just their usual library group, plus Yurio who was apparently going to be a more permanent fixture. The tea house offered a wonderfully diverse tasting menu and the owner had found a power strip and an extension cord somewhere so they could plug their various electronics in and had given them free reign to stay for as long as they liked.

 

               Victor felt himself truly relaxing for the first time since he’d arrived in Japan.

 

               Of course, it also didn’t hurt that Yuri had ended up right next to him on his left side and the round table they were all crammed around was on the smaller end of the spectrum.

 

               It was actually terribly difficult to concentrate when Yuri’s thigh kept brushing against his whenever they adjusted positions.

 

               Not that Victor minded at all.

 

               “I could literally stay here for the rest of my life.” Chris had pushed his laptop away and had his head pillowed in his arms on top of the table.

 

               “Agreed.” Guang Hong took a whiff of the steam rising up from his cup and closed his eyes with a content smile. “We have great tea back home, but the scenery is nothing like this.”

 

               “One of these days you should all come back in the springtime when the cherry blossoms are blooming. It really is something that has to be seen in person to be believed.” Yuri had taken off his glasses and was wiping them on a soft cloth he’d pulled from his bag. “My parents own a few resorts around Japan. I could get you guys a discount if you ever wanted to visit.”

 

               “That would be amazing!” Leo exclaimed. “I’ve always heard it’s beautiful here in the spring. Where I’m from it’s just hot.”

 

               “Where I’m from, spring doesn’t start until June.” Victor was surprised how easy it was to joke and laugh with these people he still technically barely knew. It wasn’t that Victor had ever had difficulty attracting people to him in the past. It was forging a true friendship where he often came up short as people always seemed to expect something more from him than he was able to provide.

 

               “June?” Yurio scoffed. “We’re lucky if we get spring before July.”

 

               “I accompanied my parents on a business trip here last spring.” Seung-Gil piped up from his corner and everyone turned their heads in his direction. Aside from ordering food or asking Phichit to lower his voice once or twice during their library study sessions, the Korean never actually said anything. Half the time Victor forgot he was even there. “It was a pleasant experience. I would not mind coming back again. The view was lovely.”

 

               “Well, if Seung-Gil gives it his stamp of approval then it must be amazing.” Phichit popped up to his feet with a wide grin. “I need to stretch my legs. I’m pretty sure they’re going numb. Who wants to go for a walk around the gardens?”

 

               “I second that motion. If I have to keep looking at this tiny text for much longer, Yuri isn’t going to be the only one who needs glasses.” Leo was the next to stand, with Guang Hong unsurprisingly following immediately after.

 

               “I could go for a walk.” Otabeck was next and even though Yurio grumbled in Russian under his breath about being comfortable, he got to his feet as well.

 

               “A walk would be nice.” Victor exchanged a surprised glance with Yuri as Seung-Gil closed his computer and rose to his feet, stretching the muscles in his back as he went. The Japanese man next to him seemed to share his confusion, but neither said anything.

 

               “Victor, Yuri, are you coming?” Chris was the last to get up and he paused as the others started to walk away as they were the only two left at the table.

 

               “Maybe later. I’m knee deep in this accounting assignment and I don’t want to lose track of my numbers.” Yuri gestured towards the complex spreadsheet he was working on with a grimace. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll keep an eye on everyone’s things.”

 

               “I think I’ll stay as well. I wouldn’t want my tea to go cold.” Victor shot Chris a look when he was sure Yuri was paying more attention to his numbers than to him. The Swiss man returned the look with a smirk and sauntered off without another word.

 

               “You don’t have to stay and keep me company if you don’t want to.” Yuri still had his eyes trained on his spreadsheet, but Victor got the idea that the other boy wasn’t really absorbing what was in front of him.

 

               “Why can’t I really just not want my tea to get cold? Do I have to have an ulterior motive to spend time with you?” Victor allowed his voice to take on a light and airy tone.

 

               Keep it cool, Nikiforov, keep Yuri comfortable. The last thing he wanted was for Yuri to get nervous and scamper off as he was wont to do at times. In fact, this was the first time they had been completely alone together since they’d met. In the library, on the many tours they had gone on, eating meals together, there was always someone else (usually Phichit or Chris) hanging around or driving the conversation.

 

               He did notice, however, that even though there was now more space with the others gone, Yuri didn’t shift away. They were still sitting so close that Victor would only have to scoot a few centimeters and their thighs would be pressed together.

 

               They worked in silence for a few minutes, only the clacking keys of Yuri’s laptop keeping them company. Victor’s concentration was shot. His skin itched and there was an odd buzzing in his ears that set his teeth on edge. The others would be back soon enough. He didn’t have much time. If he was going to make a move, now was the moment to do it.

 

               “Your parents really own resorts?” Victor couldn’t take it any longer. He had to say something even if that something made him sound like a complete idiot.

 

                “Yes.” Yuri stopped typing and looked over at him, those wonderful brown eyes lighting up with warmth and happiness in a way that made Victor’s stomach flip. “My father inherited an onsen, an inn with natural hot springs, from his family and then eventually expanded the business up and down the coast. When tourism kind of fell off over time, my mother convinced him to open some more modern hotels and resorts more inland. Things took off from there. We still keep the original inn open, though. It’s where I grew up and my parents still live there.”

 

               “That sounds amazing!” Victor was now turned completely towards Yuri. “I would love to find the time to go visit someday.”

 

               Yuri hesitated then and Victor tried to keep the panic roiling in his gut from showing on his face. Things were going so well! Yuri looked happy, his eyes sparkling, his smile soft and real. Had Victor ruined that? How? Did he say something wrong?

 

               “You really would?” Yuri’s voice was soft and Victor had to lean forward a bit to hear him. “You wouldn’t think it was boring? I mean, it’s in a really small town. This time of year it’s quiet.”

 

               “That sounds perfect as a matter of fact. Relaxing.” Victor smiled and Yuri smiled back. “The way you describe it makes me wish I was already there.”

 

               “You didn’t want to go to the music festival this weekend?” Victor blinks, trying to wrap his head around the sudden shift in conversation topic.

 

               “Not really. As much as I love the culture here, music festivals aren’t really my scene.” Victor leant back out of Yuri’s space now. He rested his elbow on the table and laid his head in the cup of his hand. “Phichit made it sound like you weren’t going either.”

 

               “I’m not. I already had plans to visit my parents this weekend.” Yuri’s cheeks reddened, but he seemed calm. “Phichit was supposed to come with me, but I think he’s taking this whole mother hen thing very seriously. My mom was expecting me to bring a friend, though. If you aren’t busy, would you want to go? You’ve been complaining about wanting to do more traditional Japanese things and it doesn’t get much more traditional than a centuries old hot spring, right?”

 

               “Yuri!” Victor wanted to dance he was so happy. Instead he restrained himself to clapping his hands and wiggling in his seat. “Yes! I would love that!”

 

               He wanted to say more. He wanted to ask Yuri a million questions. Questions about the inn, about his family, about anything and everything so long as they could continue to talk like this. Yuri was smiling and laughing and he looked so _happy_ that Victor felt a strong urge to wrap the other man in his arms and never let him go.

 

               Before he could do any of those things the rest of the group returned from their walk so he contented himself with bumping their shoulders together and pushing another cup of tea in his direction.

 

               Friday afternoon and the end of their school trip couldn’t come soon enough.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Same notes as always. For foreign languages the follow indicators will still be used:
> 
> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> This is the last chapter in Japan before we head off to our next country! I originally had planned for one chapter in each location, maybe two for plot heavy locations, but the characters seem to have plans of their own so for now it looks like we're averaging three chapters per country.
> 
> Also, ice skating in this chapter because I couldn't help myself! ^_^
> 
> Thanks to everyone who has left a kudos or a comment! I can't stress how happy all of you have made me!

January – Japan

 

               Even now, sitting on a train on the way to a town called Hasetsu, Victor can’t believe his luck. Yuri is here. Yuri is right next to him. Of course he is. Yuri invited Victor to his family’s home. No teachers. No classmates. Just a weekend of getting to spend time with his crush.

 

               Who knows what could happen in the space of a weekend? Anything, everything, or nothing.

 

               Victor couldn’t wait to find out which it would be.

 

               The ride to Yuri’s hometown had been smooth so far. They’d kept the conversation light, topics glossing over anything intensely personal and kept more in the realm of generalities. Victor found himself soaking up every single bit of precious information to fall out of the other man’s mouth still. They discussed the types of music they liked, bands they listened to and concerts attended. Victor now knew Yuri’s favorite color was blue, that he’d had a pet toy poodle when he’d been younger and that the dog had passed away several months ago while Yuri had been away at school.

 

               He now knew Yuri’s guilty pleasures were fatty foods that definitely weren’t on any type of diet plan. That Yuri was addicted to Thai dramas thanks to Phichit and that he was looking forward to the European leg of their trip. That Yuri smiled with his eyes and crinkled his nose when concentrating and laughed with his whole body when he felt comfortable.

 

               All silly tidbits that didn’t mean much on the surface, but went a hell of a long way to helping Victor form the picture of who Yuri was underneath the polite, if somewhat distant, exterior he portrayed.

 

               Victor found himself opening up in return on that hour and a half train ride. He hadn’t even realized his favorite color was either red or a deep burgundy until Yuri had asked, or that he had been craving his favorite mint tea from the café across the street from his apartment. Yuri found out that he was a sucker for romantic comedies and secretly enjoy cheesy horror movies. All things Victor knew about himself, but had never placed any amount of importance in. Yuri listened with rapt attention when discussing someone as inconsequential as Victor’s favorite Russian soap opera as he did when Victor recounted a drunken escapade from his first year in university which had ended with him leading a naked run through campus at two in the morning. Yuri acted as though it was the most important story he’d ever heard.

 

               He’d never had to tell that story to anyone before. All his friends back home had either been there when it had happened or had heard about it after the tale had spread through campus. He wasn’t prepared for the embarrassed flush on his face or the way Yuri clapped a hand on his shoulder in solidarity, confiding that fear of his night ending much the same way usually kept him from drinking too much.

 

               They arrived at their destination much too soon.

 

               Even standing on the steps in front of the train station, Victor could tell Yuri had been right when he’d said Hasetsu was just a sleepy small town. There was a hush that lay over the streets as they made their way towards Yuri’s home. Anywhere else, it might have felt oppressive, but here it felt calming. People meandered around going about their day with a smile and a wave. Yuri waved back on occasion, whispering to Victor about the old woman who owned the dry cleaners. Tell him about the man who had opened a grocery there a few years ago who had two daughters in high school that liked to sing at festivals, or the older gentleman that fished off the pier every morning and who would give any extra fish he caught to the single mother who lived around the bend.

 

               It was clear Yuri hadn’t truly lived here for years, but that didn’t mean this place was no less dear to his heart and Victor felt his own love for Hasetsu growing with each new fact he uncovered. He had never felt out of place in St. Petersburg even for all its size, but he felt himself yearning for a place like this, too. Somewhere it would be impossible to hide, where everyone knew you and your business and he could spend his days walking through these narrow streets with Yuri by his side.

 

               The walk to the inn was both too long and entirely too short. Lugging their wheeled bags and with straps of backpacks digging into their shoulders, they were out of breath and sore as they made their way up the walkway to the entrance of the inn. While Victor’s body was protesting the abuse the recent travel had placed on it, his mind was lamenting at the end of their journey. The end of his time to have Yuri’s attention all to himself.

 

               Yuri shouted something in Japanese as they walked through the doors into a foyer area at the front of the inn. To his right, there was an open dining area with tables spaced evenly throughout, a television at the front, and a small bar tucked into a far corner. On his left, there was a narrow hall that lead off into the depths of the inn.

 

               Before Victor could get a better look at his surroundings, there was a loud shout and a small woman with glasses, a round face, and a broad grin hurried over to them, babbling in Japanese and not pausing until she had Yuri wrapped up tightly in her arms. From the way Yuri was only squirming slightly and wasn’t actively trying to get away, Victor assumed this must be his mother.

 

               Upon being released Yuri was smiling widely. He motioned between his mother and Victor and said something else. Victor assumed it was introducing him as he was pretty sure he’d heard his name and then Yuri’s mother was beaming at him as she bowed.

 

               “Victor-san. Yuri’s friend. Katsuki Hiroko. Yuri’s mother.” He could tell her English wasn’t good, but the simple fact that she’d tried made him far happier than it should have. “Long trip. Are you boys hungry?”

 

               “I could eat.” Victor nodded brightly, not trusting his limited Japanese vocabulary and thick Russian accept to attempt to speak in her language. Yuri was quick to translate though, giving his mother another hug and now motioning towards the staircase behind the bar.

 

               Hiroko nodded and said something else to her son. When she was done, she waved them along, humming to herself as Yuri nudged his shoulder against Victor’s as a sign to follow him.

 

               “Mom wants us to drop our things off in our rooms and then come back down here for food. She’s going to make katsudon. It’s my favorite. You’ll like it. No one cooks like my mother.” Yuri led the way up the stairs and down a long hall, pausing at the end where there were two doors. “When I told them you were coming, they set up a room for you next to mine. It’s an old banquet room that fell out of use when we converted this floor into family living space, but it’s clean and you’ll have plenty of space.”

 

               “I’m sure it’ll be perfect. It doesn’t take much for me to be comfortable.” Victor was quick to reassure Yuri. His efforts were rewarded with another unguarded smile that made Victor’s heart leap and his brain melt.

 

               Yuri was right, the room wasn’t much. There was another futon on the floor and Victor couldn’t bite back a quiet groan at the thought of spending another two nights on the ground. At least Yuri hadn’t been there to hear. It was large though, more space than Victor really needed. He dropped his backpack on the bedding on the floor and chucked his suitcase in the corner, stretching his arms over his head as soon as he was done, listening as his back popped as he worked out the kinks.

 

               “The toilet is up on the third floor with my parents’ and sister’s rooms if you need it. There’s a shower up there, too, but we mostly use the baths down by the hot springs. If you want some privacy though you are more than welcome to use the shower.” Victor jumped and spun around to find Yuri leaning against the doorframe. “I can ask Mari if there is a vacant guest room open if you’d like.”

 

               “No. This is fine.” Victor was quick to reassure the other boy. “I like it. It feels like a home. Better than a hotel or a dorm room for sure. Thank you for inviting me.”

 

               “Hmmm. I’m sorry if it’s not what you were expecting.” Yuri pushed himself off the doorframe and took a step back. “You don’t have to worry about hurting my feelings. I know we don’t know each other very well yet, but you can let me know if you’re uncomfortable.”

 

               “Yuri, I’m really not.” Victor moved forward as Yuri stepped back once more so that he was now completely in the hall. “You don’t have to keep apologizing for nothing. I wanted to come.”

 

               Yuri stared at him, eyes narrowed slightly as though he was trying to see into Victor’s head to make sure he was telling the truth and not hiding anything. Victor put his hands on his hips and stared back, almost daring Yuri to try to apologize again. For a split second, it almost seemed like he would. Yuri wavered in the middle of the hall before shaking his head and offered up a weak smile that Victor was sure was a nonverbal apology, but he let it slide.

 

               “I do believe someone promised me a delicious homecooked meal?” Victor winked and he could feel the tension bleed off Yuri instantly. There. That was better.

 

 

               “You do know I’m not going to be around forever to make sure you stay fed, right?”

 

               “Ah, but you are here now. I guess that means the responsibility still falls on you!”

 

               Victor didn’t actually say aloud that having Yuri around forever was definitely an option on the table currently. He didn’t say it, but he thought it. Tried to project the image through Yuri’s thick skull and into his own brain as he followed the other man down the hall to the stairs.

 

               Yuri wasn’t getting it yet, but he would. Victor was going to make sure of it.

 

~

 

               The food was more than delicious.

 

               Victor wasn’t sure there was a word in any human language that could accurately describe the taste of Yuri’s mother’s cooking. He tried to explain it in Russian, in French, in English, but nothing quite seemed to capture the true depths of the heaven had ascended to with that first bite. Yuri laughed and his eyes sparkled as he translated Victor’s babbling commentary into Japanese for his mother’s benefit.

 

               The older woman had smiled and given him a pat on the head, thanking him as she went back to the kitchen to get her own meal and join them.

 

               They ate together in a small room off to the side of the main dining area that was separated from the other customers by thin paper screens. The rest of Yuri’s family had joined them, their excitement for having their son in for visit leading them to let the other staff handle the thinning crowd of paying customers. Luckily, they had arrived right between the lunch rush and the dinner rush, so Yuri’s family was free enough to spend some time with them.

 

               Victor found himself really and truly enjoying himself. Even more so than he had thought he would. Yuri’s mother and father didn’t speak English very well, but Yuri’s sister Mari did. With Yuri and Mari translating it was easy enough to fall into the rhythm of cheery conversation.

 

               Yuri’s mother was as bright as cheerful as she was when they first met. She asked a million questions both to Yuri and to Victor and was genuinely interested in hearing the answers. Yuri’s father was more subdued than his wife, but was no less jovial because of it. They had been seated together for no more than five minutes before he extended a permanent invitation for Victor to visit at any time free of charge, an offer which, Victor was pleased to see, had Yuri blushing while looking pleased.

 

               Mari was a tad more difficult to get a read on. Yuri’s older sister was, well, steady was the best word that came to mind. She laughed when appropriate and leant across the table to ruffle Yuri’s hair once as she recounted a story from their childhood when Yuri had wandered away from her at the market and she’d found him snuggling with a group of puppies in a pet store one street over. There was a dark glint in her eye sometimes when she would look at Victor, the kind of look that made him think she was trying to measure his worth and that the jury was still out on her decision. He straightened in his seat every time he would feel the weight of her gaze and he kept his flirting to a minimum.

 

               After they were done eating, Yuri’s mother began poking her son in the side, spouting more unintelligible Japanese and pointing off towards the depths of the inn. Yuri nodded and said something back to her, squeezing her shoulder gently as she grabbed some dishes and turned to go. Yuri’s father followed her with the things she hadn’t been able to carry and Mari left as well, muttering about needing a smoke under her breath as she went.

 

               “What should we do next?” Victor’s previous exhaustion had melted away as they’d eaten. He would probably feel it later, but right now he was certain he wouldn’t have been able to sleep even if he’d tried.

 

               “Mom suggested we soak in the hot springs before it gets too busy with the evening crowds.” Yuri scratched at the back of his neck, which Victor had noticed was a gesture he tended to use when getting ready to explain some complicated aspect of Japanese culture to their friends. “She said that since you’d come all this way, it would be a shame for you to miss out on the experience.”

 

               “That sounds like a great idea!” Victor clapped his hands together in excitement. A soak in hot water was exactly what his aching back needed. Plus, the chance to see Yuri in a swimsuit wasn’t something he was going to pass up. “Let’s go!”

 

               Yuri shook his head in that way he did when Victor would get over-excited about something that he felt didn’t deserve such high levels of enthusiasm, but he got up and led the way anyways. Victor bounced along behind him.

 

               They made it all the way to the bathhouse before Victor realized something important.

 

               He hadn’t thought to pack a swimsuit.

 

               Not only had he not thought to bring one, but Yuri hadn’t taken them back to their rooms. He’d brought them straight here.

 

               Which meant not only did Victor not have a swimsuit, Yuri didn’t have one either.

 

               Oh… Victor hadn’t exactly prepared for this…

 

               Yuri didn’t even pause as he opened the door to the bathhouse. Victor followed hesitantly, poking his head in first before stepping fully into the room where Yuri had walked in full of confidence. Or maybe it was less confidence and more familiarity. In either case, Victor was now the one almost paralyzed with nerves while Yuri was relaxed as he sorted through a shelf that was laden with towels and robes searching for something.

 

               “Okay.” Yuri turned around with a pair of towels in his arms. “I’m pretty sure I already know the answer, but I have to ask. I wouldn’t want to go over the rules if I don’t need to. So, have you ever been to an onsen before?”

 

               “Nope!” Victor thought he had done a good job of acting like his heart wasn’t beating too hard. He voice had only risen about half an octave. He plastered his best smile across his face and hoped Yuri wouldn’t notice the flush creeping up the back of his neck. “There are rules?”

 

               “More like traditions.” Yuri held out one of the towels and Victor took it. “First, we have to wash off before we can get in.”

 

               Yuri paused in his explanation for a moment to peek around the wall the shelf was pushed against and into the room beyond.

 

               “It doesn’t look like there’s any guests in the washroom right now. If we hurry we can be washed off and in the springs before anyone shows up. It’s usually pretty quiet until the dinner rush gets underway.” Yuri motioned for Victor to follow him as they made their way into the washroom. “There’s no clothing allowed in the hot springs themselves. You can leave your things in one of the lockers over here.”

 

               Yuri pointed to a row of lockers along the back wall. “Even if some guests come through here while we’re soaking, no one will take anything.”

 

               Victor watched as Yuri opened one of the lockers, his mouth going dry as the other man pulled his shirt over his head in one fluid motion. Victor gripped his towel to his chest tightly as he watched the muscles in Yuri’s back move beneath his tanned skinned. As the Japanese man’s hand went to the button of his jeans Victor suddenly found the ceiling much more interesting.

 

               Shit, and here was Victor thinking that _Yuri_ was supposed to be the shy one.

 

               “You don’t have any tattoos, right?”

 

               Victor struggled to wrap his head around Yuri’s question. In an attempt to get his imagination under control he hurried over to a locker down at the end in the hope that gaining some distance from a shirtless Yuri Katsuki might help improve where his cognitive functions were currently shorting out.

 

               “Ah… No? Are they not allowed?”

 

               “Tradition.” Yuri offered up as an explanation. “My parents are better with foreigners having them so long as they can be covered, but if you don’t have any don’t worry about it.”

 

               Victor nodded to show Yuri he understood before averting his gaze again and placing his towel in the locker so he could pull his own shirt over his head.

 

               Maybe this whole ‘hot springs’ thing had been a bad idea…

 

~

 

               Soaking in the hot springs was the best idea Victor had ever had in his entire life.

 

               Well, it had been Yuri’s mother’s idea, but the sentiment remained the same.

 

               He had to admit it had been awkward perched on a wooden stool in the bathhouse, trying to wash himself off without his mind running away with the knowledge that Yuri was behind him doing the same thing, also gloriously naked, with nothing more than a towel on each of their laps to preserve their modesty, but he’d managed to somehow get out of that situation without terminally embarrassing himself.

 

               It had all been worth it the moment he’d been able to sink his body into the warmth of the springs.

 

               “Why would you ever leave this place if you didn’t have to?” Victor groaned and sank deeper into the water, leaning his head back to rest against a rock at the pool’s edge. It was like all the tension he had been holding in his muscles for his entire life had suddenly disappeared. He was pretty sure he wouldn’t have been able to get up and walk right then even if he’d wanted to.

 

               “Unfortunately, I did need to go to college at some point and distance learning just doesn’t quite work the same when you can’t use a computer because of the steam and water.” Yuri was seated across from Victor, glasses gone and completely naked, but even though Victor had been freaking out about that little detail, it actually wasn’t as big of a deal as he thought it would be once he’d gotten used to it. The steam from the water hid most anything worth seeing and Yuri himself wasn’t drawing any attention to their nudity. Victor had to assume his comfort came from years of bathing with strangers. “I miss it when I’m away, though. Deep tubs and mineral infused bath bombs just don’t cut it. There is no substitute for the real thing.”

 

               “This is amazing!” Victor stretched his arms over his head until his back popped and then dropped his arms back into the water with a soft splash. “I know I’ve already said it, but thank you for inviting me. I never would have known what I was missing if you hadn’t.”

 

               “I’m glad you like it.” Victor couldn’t be sure through the steam and the way a pleasant warmth hung in the air despite the winter chill that still hovered at the edges of the outdoor bath causing both of their skin to turn pink, but he thought there was the telltale sign of another trademark Yuri Katsuki blush burning on the other man’s cheeks. “I was thinking. There’s a rink not too far from here. For ice skating. An old friend of mine owns the place with her husband. I was wanting to go there tomorrow to visit and maybe skate for a bit. Would you want to come?”

 

               “You skate?” Victor sat up straighter.

 

               “Yeah. I used to skate all the time when I was younger. Yuko-chan, my friend, she was really good. We used to go to competitions together.” Yuri’s eyes were doing that thing where they sparkled as he spoke and Victor found himself hanging onto every word. “She even pushed me to go all the way to Junior Nationals one year.”

 

               “So why aren’t you some figure skating super star by now?” Victor’s tone was teasing, but he found he desperately wanted to know the answer. This felt deeper than finding out Yuri’s favorite color. “Sounds like you were pretty good to go to Nationals and all.”

 

               “My anxiety mostly. I would get so nervous before some competitions that I would basically have a panic attack. It caused my jumps to be too inconsistent.” Yuri shrugged as though it didn’t bother him much. Maybe it didn’t, but Victor couldn’t push away a nagging suspicion that it had hurt Yuri more than he was letting on to quit. “Eventually, I decided I was happier just doing it for fun. There’s no pressure that way and I can just do whatever makes me feel good instead of having to worry over song choices, costumes, choreography, rigid training schedules… Diets. I could only eat my mother’s cooking in the off-season. She would always make me a big bowl of katsudon when I’d win something. It still wasn’t the same as being able to eat whenever I wanted, though.”

 

               “Well, when you put it that way…” Victor laughed and Yuri did, too. “I used to skate, too, when I was a boy. I’m Russian. Winter sports are in our blood.”

 

               “Then why aren’t _you_ an internationally renowned champion figure skater?”

 

               “Same reason a lot of people aren’t. Injuries. I competed at a national level for a few years in the Junior division. I was good enough to qualify for the International Grand Prix series. It was going to be my first international competition, but I blew out my knee a month before I was supposed to skate in France.” Victor rubbed his knee under the water as he felt an imaginary twinge in the joint at the memory. “I had surgery and was in physical therapy for a while. My coach thought I would be able to push through it and we decided to try to qualify for a spot on the Russian team for Worlds the next year, but I panicked because two of the boys in my division already had quads. At Russian Nationals I was a complete idiot and tried to turn my triple toe loop into a quad and aggravated the old injury. After that I didn’t want to risk the strain of international competition again.”

 

               Yuri winced in sympathy. They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes, each one locked in their own private memories. Victor supposed he should have felt more awkward with the situation, but he didn’t. He was comfortable. Warm and content and happy to just sit in companionable silence while the magic water, and Victor was completely convinced this water was magic, did its job of relaxing tense muscles and chasing away lingering aches and pains.

 

               Eventually, their private world was broken upon the arrival of a group of jovial business men and Victor and Yuri soaked for only a few minutes longer before getting up and leaving them to it. Yuri mumbled something about wanting to catch a nap before dinner and Victor agreeing with him wholeheartedly.

 

~

 

               Victor met Yuri at the front of the inn the next morning wearing track pants, a jacket, and a thick sweatshirt. Mari had offered to take some time off to drive them up the hill and to the rink, but Yuri had waved her off with an excuse of wanting to stretch his legs and go for a run along the beach since beach fronts weren’t exactly common place in Tokyo. Victor had seconded that motion. He had kept in peak physical condition out of habit from his days of being a competitive athlete and he hadn’t found either the time or the place to exercise the way he was used to since coming to Japan.

 

               The other man had beat him there and Victor tried to keep his eyes above the belt as they both stretched out before setting off at a light jog. It would have been a lot easier to accomplish the goal of not falling into his habit of staring at Yuri’s ass whenever he thought Yuri wasn’t looking if the other man had chosen to wear sweatpants that were a little looser.

 

 Yuri had agreed to take him the scenic route on the way there so Victor could see more of the sleepy town and have the opportunity to see the beach. The sky was grey and it was threatening to snow again, but Victor didn’t let that dampen his spirits. In fact, the weak light over the sand and choppy waves added a different kind of beauty to the view before him.

 

               As much as Victor had enjoyed the view and the sporadic commentary from Yuri, he found himself embarrassingly out of breath by the time they made it to their destination. He paused at the base of the stone steps leading up to the rink with his hands on his knees, trying to get his breath back while Yuri only looked slightly winded.

 

               Well, that was unexpected. Victor made a mental note to find a gym in every city from now on so there was no longer an excuse to slack off.

 

               “My god. You’re a monster.” Victor was finally getting his breathing back under control enough to speak. “How far did we go?”

 

               “Roughly ten kilometers.” Yuri waited patiently for Victor to straighten up before continuing. “You were the one that begged to take the scenic route. We’ll take the direct route home, though. That’s less than five, I think. Or we can call Mari or a cab.”

 

               “Oh, only ten kilometers? Felt like further.” Victor groaned as he dropped down into a lunge, trying to stretch out a cramp in his thigh. “I’m usually in better shape than this, I promise.”

 

               “I believe you.” Yuri laughed, taking a second to stretch out his own muscles. “There’s a gym on campus I use. I’ve always had a tendency to gain weight easily, so I counteract that by dancing, skating, and running. If you want, when we get back I can show you the gym. I know we only have a few weeks left before we leave for Korea, but you can ease back into a routine before we go.”

 

               “Perfect. I can’t wait.” Victor sank down into one last deep stretch and then straightened back up. “Alright, let’s go see your friend!”

 

               Yuri’s friend turned out to be a girl several years older than them. She greeted them, in English to Victor’s immense relief, from behind a counter towards the back of the lobby area.

 

               “Yuri! I didn’t think we’d be seeing you again so soon!” Yuri and Victor walked up, the Japanese man blushing hard as she leant over the counter and wrapped him in as tight a hug as could be managed with a counter top in their way. “Aren’t you supposed to be on some kind of grand adventure? Where’s Phichit? You didn’t run away, did you? Oh! Who’s your friend?”

 

               “Yuko-chan! I know I told you that the program starts with a month in Tokyo. I swear I mentioned it at Christmas and that I was going to try to come up for a weekend before we left for the next stop.” Yuko paused for a moment deep in thought before her eyes lit up in recognition and she nodded. “Phichit is in Tokyo with the rest of the group. They wanted to go to some music festival on campus.”

 

               “I’m Victor!” Victor inserted himself into the conversation with a smile and a wave. “Victor Nikiforov. I’m from Russia. Yuri was nice enough to invite me along with him when he found out I also did not want to attend the music festival. Your English is very good.”

 

               “Thank you.” Yuko took Victor’s proffered hand and shook it. “I always liked English classes in high school and we get more than a few tourists here every year. Someone around here needs to be able to communicate with them. Make sure they tie their skates tight enough, don’t bash their heads against the boards trying to attempt a move they shouldn’t be…”

 

               “That happened one time!” Yuri squawked.

 

               “I’ve still got about another five years’ worth of teasing left on that one by my calculations.” Yuko winked at Victor. “Did he ever tell you about that?”

 

               “No, I didn’t tell him about that.” Yuri grumbled. “Why would I ever want to tell anyone that story willingly?”

 

               “Tell me!” Victor clapped his hands in excitement.

 

               “I’ll tell you later.” Yuri promised. Victor made a mental note to make sure to hold him to it later. He had a sneaking suspicion that if left to his own devices, Yuri would purposefully forget that particular promise. “Is there anyone out on the ice right now?”

 

               “You’re lucky. Ito-sensei canceled her practice time for today. Something about her student needing a rest day after landing a quad funny yesterday. You’ve got the whole place to yourself until we open up for the free skate at two. I still have your skates in my office if you want to go get them.”

 

               “Thanks Yuko-chan.” Yuri hurried off to collect his things, leaving Victor alone with Yuko.

 

               “Do you know how to skate? If you need it, I can show you how to lace those up properly.” Yuko asked after he had provided his shoe size to her and she had dug out a pair of skates for him.

 

               “Yes, I know how to skate.” Victor accepted the equipment offered to him. “It’s been a few months so I might be rusty, but I know enough to avoid hitting my head on the boards…”

 

               “I’m going to let Yuri-kun tell you that story. It’ll have a higher entertainment value with all the stuttering and blushing that’ll go with it.” Yuko’s grin was mischievous and Victor returned it with one of his own. “Go on. The rink is just through those doors. He can meet you there.”

 

               “Thanks, Yuko.”

 

~

 

               It turned out that Yuri was really good at skating. Far better than he had been giving himself credit for. Victor was coming to realize that selling himself short was a habit of Yuri’s. He made a note to remember that whatever skill level Yuri claimed to be at something, to assume he was roughly two levels higher than he made himself out to be.

 

               Victor wasn’t exactly a slouch either and they spent most of the time talking, laughing, and showing off for each other. Even with the familiar ache in his bad knee, Victor felt their skating session was over far too soon.

 

               Yuko’s husband ended up driving them home. As much as Victor wanted to spend more alone time with Yuri, he had to admit he was tired, sore, and probably not up to walking another five meters, much less five kilometers and Yuko had insisted they weren’t putting her husband out. Apparently, he had to go pick up their daughters from the dance studio at the center of town and Yuri’s place was on the way.

 

               A half hour spent soaking in the hot springs did breathe a little bit of life back into him, though.

 

               “I’ve decided. I’m dropping out of school and living here for the rest of my life.” Victor sank down onto the floor in front of the low table Yuri’s family always ate at in the evenings with a content sigh. “I doubt anyone will miss me, but if they do, can you be a dear and let them know I’m fine, Yuri?”

 

               “Tell them yourself.” Yuri’s smile was wide and genuine as he took up the spot across from Victor.

 

               He wasn’t quite sure he could pinpoint the exact moment it happened, but there had been a pleasant shift in their relationship. Yuri was being more open with him. There was less stuttering or stammering. He didn’t instinctively jolt away when Victor would bump against him or reach out to him. Yuri was able to tease him now and take Victor’s teasing in turn with minimal levels of blushing.

 

               If Victor had thought Yuri Katsuki was adorable before, this version of Yuri was something else entirely.

 

               “Always so mean to me!” Victor pouted, enjoying the laugh it pulled from his friend, and Yuri was his friend now. Somehow Victor had managed to cross the boundary. It made his heart thrill with excitement just thinking about it. “What happened to that polite Japanese boy who saved my life?”

 

               “I didn’t save your life.” Yuri rolled his eyes and pulled the bowl containing his dinner a little closer to him. “You really do have to stop telling people that. One of these days someone is actually going to believe you and then we’re both going to look like idiots.”

 

               “They should believe me. It’s the truth after all.” Victor smiled smugly as Yuri groaned and began eating, clearly trying to ignore Victor’s dramatics. “I don’t think I ever properly thanked you for that… Or for anything you’ve done for me these past few weeks.”

 

               “You really don’t have to.” Yuri protested. “I don’t mind taking everyone around and answering questions and making sure no one orders something poisonous by accident. It’s not a bother at all.”

 

               Victor was one hundred percent certain that even if it was a bother, Yuri never would have said so. He had never met someone who was so naturally caring and kind. Or someone who was so determined to hide himself from the world. Yuri was like no one Victor had ever met before and he was enthralled.

 

               “How did you meet Phichit?” Victor asked. Mostly to change the conversation in case he really was irritating the other man, but also because he genuinely wanted to know. He wanted to know every little thing about Yuri’s life in a way he had never bothered to do with anyone else. “You two seem very close.”

 

               “We met two years ago when Phichit moved to Tokyo. He was assigned as my roommate and we just kind of hit it off. He didn’t speak Japanese very well back then so I offered to help him learn.” There is was again. Yuri offering to help someone in need and then acting as though it hadn’t been any bother at all. Acting as though he had just been doing something anyone else would have done without a second thought. “The rest, as they say, is history. We’re like brothers now.”

 

               Victor tried to suppress the shiver of joy that ran up his spine at Yuri’s use of the term ‘brothers’ to describe his relationship with Phichit. He’d been trying to ignore the stab of jealousy that would sometimes overtake him whenever he caught sight of Phichit and Yuri conversing easily in Japanese either in the library or when they were out with friends.

 

               “It must have been exciting to find out you were both accepted into this course, then.”

 

               “I actually only applied because he made me.” Yuri admitted. Victor would have to remind himself to thank the Thai man for that later. Now that Victor knew what he would have been missing, a year of traveling without Yuri sounded lonelier than ever before. “I still almost turned it down, but Mari and I have been discussing maybe wanting to expand the business outside of Japan in the next few years and she thought it would be a good way for me to do some research before I graduate.”

 

               “What about you? How long have you known Chris?”

 

Victor’s eyes widened a bit at the question. Yuri was leaning forward now, resting his forearms on the table, food forgotten as he waited for Victor’s answer. Hm… That was interesting.

 

               “A few years. We’d never met in person before this trip, though.” Yuri made a noise of encouragement then and Victor went on. Could it be that he might not have been the only person harboring some jealous feelings? God, he hoped so. “I took an online French course during my gap year. I was bored and thought learning a foreign language would be something interesting. He was one of the online tutors. Even though we would only speak through a computer, we’re still best friends. He helps me with schoolwork and I help him with his boyfriend troubles. It’s a nice tradeoff.”

 

               Was it his imagination or did Yuri looked relieved as soon as Victor had mentioned Chris having a boyfriend?

 

               Before Victor could press that reaction any further they were interrupted by Yuri’s family arriving from the kitchen to join them. Victor found himself drawn into the conversation, relaxed and happy as he spoke with Mari or exchanged simple sentences with Hiroko. He shared a glass of sake with Toshiya, Yuri’s father, and went to bed entirely too late. His head spinning from the mix of alcohol and listening to Yuri talk to his sister in Japanese as they had watched TV in the main room before finally deciding to call it a night.

 

               As he lay there staring at the ceiling, Victor remembered his comment from before. About how he had joked about dropping out of school and living there in Yuri’s childhood home. Jogging to the rink in the mornings, bathing in the hot springs, sharing dinner with Yuri’s family. Begging Yuri to tell him how to say something in Japanese so he could praise Hiroko for her cooking and Toshiya for the drink. Preening with pride as Mari reached out to ruffle his hair after he’d told a particularly funny joke at his own expense.

 

               It suddenly didn’t seem like a simple joke any longer.

 

               In another life, he could picture himself staying here. Taking the time to know the town, the people, the language. Getting to spend every day with Yuri with no school assignments or curious friends getting in their way.

 

               Victor drifted off to sleep that night feeling like he was more at home here than he ever had been in Russia.

 

~

 

               “[I like him. He’s cute. And totally crushing on you.]”

 

               “[Mari! He’s _right there_!]” Yuri felt the back of his neck heat up as he shot a panicked glance towards where Victor was watching TV and sharing a drink with his father.

 

               “[Does he speak Japanese?]” Mari tilted her head curiously and Yuri shook his in return. “[Good. So long as you’re not totally obvious about it, he’ll never know.]”

 

               “[It’s still rude.]” Yuri grumbled. Not to mention embarrassing. Even knowing there was no way Victor would understand them, it still made his skin crawl thinking about saying anything with the other man so close. “[And he’s not crushing on me. He’s just friendly. I would say it’s a Russian thing, but the other Russian in our group is the polar opposite of friendly, so it might just be a him thing.]”

 

               “[You’re doing that thing you do where you disregard all the signs that someone has a crush on you.]” Mari crossed her arms over her chest and Yuri squirmed under her piercing gaze.

 

               “[I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t do that.]”

 

               “[Remember when you were in middle school and those three girls would always follow you here after school begging you to join their study group?]” Mari’s eyes were sparkling at Yuri’s discomfort.

 

               “[I had the highest marks in English. They just needed some help.]” Yuri was quick to protest. He always had been good with the language. It hadn’t taken long for his classmates to figure that out and come to him for help. “[Yuko-chan would come over to help them, too, when she could.]”

 

               “[Yuko-chan never giggled about how cute you looked in your glasses when you’d get up to go to the toilet, though.]”

 

               “[I still think you’re making that up.]” Yuri had been having this argument over and over again with his sister for years. It was an argument he had yet to win. “[If they thought I was so cute, why did they stop coming?]”

 

               “[Because you kept ignoring them.]” Mari grinned triumphantly. “[Then there was that boy when you were in high school, when you were still skating. He followed you all the way to Fukuoka and threw roses out onto the ice when you were done. Explain that one away.]”

 

               “[He was just showing his support! He was a friend.]” Yuri frowned. Okay, that one was a little bit harder to explain away, but that didn’t have to mean anything. “[Don’t you have something better to do than analyze all my friendships trying to look for crushes that don’t exist?]”

 

               “[Probably. This is definitely more fun.]”

 

               Yuri resisted the urge to bury his face in his hands. Out of the corner of his eye he’d noticed Victor sending them curious glances. The last thing he needs is to draw more of Victor’s attention to him right now. God forbid the Russian ask what they were talking about. Knowing his sister, Mari wouldn’t think twice about just fucking telling him.

 

               “[It doesn’t matter. That is definitely not the case this time.]” It’s not that Yuri didn’t want it to be the case. He’d never wanted anything more in his entire life, but he would never be able to live with himself if he drove Victor off by reading something in nothing. They were just now starting to get to a place Yuri could describe as friendship.

 

               Besides, Victor is Victor. He is pale skin, bright smiles, and silver hair that gleams in the sunlight. Vibrant blue eyes and a laugh that fills a room. He draws people to him like flies to honey. When he looks at you it makes you feel like you are his entire world for however long his gaze lasts. He is joking and winking and bumping shoulders with Yuri on the train.

 

               Victor is Victor and Yuri is just… Well, Yuri. Plain and simple and not special at all.

 

               “[You know I love you, little brother.]” Mari’s expression is warm and she reaches out and squeezes his shoulder in a gesture that is intended to comfort. “[Just… Don’t write it off so quickly this time. Give him a chance. He might surprise you.]”

 

               “[Thanks.]”

 

               Before either of them could say anything further, Victor called out Yuri’s name from across the room. Yuri jolted in his seat, the way Victor rolled out the ‘u’ in his name causing sparks to go off inside his brain and he struggled to get himself back under control.

 

               Mari looked at him with an eyebrow raised, lips quirked up in the left corner, as though she _knew_ somehow exactly what Yuri was feeling in that moment.

 

               Yuri was so _screwed_.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know the drill by now:
> 
> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Sorry for the longer than anticipated delay. I had a competition this weekend so I was without Internet on my computer since Friday so uploads were not possible.
> 
> Hope you enjoy~

February – South Korea

 

               They land at Gimpo International Airport in Seoul four hours late and just after dark.

 

               Victor was exhausted. The day had started far too early for his liking as Chris had pulled him out of bed before the sun had even risen in order to meet their study group at the café down the street that Phichit and Yuri liked for one last breakfast in Tokyo before returning to the dorms and retrieving their luggage.

 

               Vans had been rented for the occasion and Victor found himself stuffed between Chris and Yurio for some reason. The seat behind them was Seung-Gil, Guang Hong, and Leo. In front was Phichit, Otabeck and Yuri. Victor spent the short ride to the airport staring at the back of Yuri’s head and wishing the seating arrangements had ended up differently.

 

               Especially when Yurio ended up elbowing him in the ribs when Victor is too distracted to notice he’d been asked a question.

 

               “ **Is there a reason you feel as though you have to hit me?** ” Victor asked as he rubs his side while they all try to pile out of the vans in the airport parking lot.

 

               “ **Is there a reason you have to be such a lovesick idiot all the time?** ” Yurio snipes back. Victor lets it go. The kid does have a point this time.

 

               Getting through security with forty people takes roughly two hours. Then they are delayed for another four waiting for the weather to clear enough to leave. At one point, they are allowed to board, spending forty-five minutes crowded into their economy class seats and then directed to disembark as the next squall line has blown through quicker than expected.

 

               He sits next to Chris on the plane, the Swiss man snoring lightly against his shoulder. Victor has been foiled again in any attempt to sit somewhere close to Yuri. The Japanese man is seated closer to the front of the cabin, slotted next to Phichit as usual with essentially the whole class between them this time. Victor resigns himself to staring at Yuri’s distant profile for the duration of the flight.

 

               Yurio sits behind him and kicks the back of his seat periodically grumbling in Russian about being bored.

 

               Victor tries to ignore him.

 

               The next unexpected surprise happens as they arrive at the dorm they will be staying at for the next month.

 

               When he’d been working with the administrators of the program they’d asked if he had a preference for a roommate while in Japan. Here, he finds out that was just a curtesy for students who might have applied with friends in order to help everyone settle in for their first leg of the trip. From this point forward, each new country will have a new roommate in an effort to foster those international ties the study abroad program boasts of.

 

               Victor ends up assigned to a room with Otabeck. He supposes it could be worse.

 

               It doesn’t take long for Chris to come search him out, however.

 

               “You’re lucky. I’m stuck with that Italian guy.” Chris has taken up a spot at the foot of Victor’s bed while Victor moves around the room trying to unpack his things. Otabeck hadn’t bothered doing even that much, pausing only long enough to dig out his laptop and set up shop on the corner of his own bed with a pair of noise canceling headphone over his ears. “He’s already given me a ten minute lecture about not getting any ideas about his sister.”

 

               “Did you tell him you have a boyfriend?”

 

               “I did. It didn’t seem to matter.” Chris groans and runs a hand through his blonde hair. “He seems to think his sister’s charms are more than enough to turn a gay man straight.”

 

               “She’s the one with the long, dark hair and beautiful eyes?” Chris sends him a look and Victor shrugs. “What? I can objectively state the lady has beautiful eyes without negating my own sexuality. Besides, her eyes don’t hold a candle to my Yuri’s.”

 

               “He’s not your Yuri, yet.” Chris lunges back into a sitting position and pins Victor under his green gaze. “Where are you on that, by the way?”

 

               “I’m not sure.” Victor placed his index finger against his lips as he thought about the question for a moment. “He’s not jumping five meters away whenever I touch him now. That’s progress.”

 

               “Do I need to orchestrate a move to get the two of you alone again?”

 

               Victor knew Chris would never offer something he didn’t intend to follow through on and he allowed himself to be tempted for a moment. Ever since getting back from Hasetsu, Yuri’s attention had been in high demand as the other students tried to cram seeing every nook and cranny of Tokyo in the span of two weeks while still maintaining perfect grade point averages. Their study group had even expanded because of it.

 

               “Thanks. I’m not quite that desperate, but I’ll let you know if I get there.” It was the truth at the current moment. Victor wasn’t that desperate… Yet. “It should be better here. He won’t have to do the whole ‘tour guide’ thing. Theoretically it should be easier to keep his attention when there aren’t ten other people trying to do the same.”

 

               “I don’t know. If you’re going to make your move, I would do it sooner rather than later. Yuri seems to be a hot ticket item on the market these days.” Chris grins at Victor’s obvious discomfort. His friend did have a point. Victor had begun to notice that he wasn’t the only one watching Yuri these days.

 

               Not that he could blame them. It was extremely difficult not to stare at someone as beautiful and unique as Yuri.

 

               That didn’t mean Victor had to be happy about it, though.

 

               He was about to say as much when the door burst open with enough force to slam against the wall and Yurio stalked into the room, spitting Russian curses as he went.

 

               “You!” The blonde teen growled low in his throat and crossed the room without hesitation to poke Victor in the chest so hard he was pretty sure there would be a bruise there later. “Switch rooms with me.”

 

               “Um… Why?” Victor looked down at Yurio in amusement. About three/fourths of the class were afraid of the younger boy. Victor was part of the one/fourth that was actually more amused than upset by his antics for the most part.

 

               “Because I’m stuck with that fuckwad JJ! If you don’t switch with me I’m going to kill him before the end of the week.” Yurio poked Victor in the chest for a second time for emphasis. “Come on. Switch with me and I’ll owe you one.”

 

               “Which one is JJ again?” Victor tried to search his brain to put a face to the name, but he was coming up blank.

 

               “The Canadian.” Chris was the one to supply the answer. “Dark hair, undercut. He went with us that first weekend in Tokyo and he studies with us sometimes. I think he gave you a croissant one time because he'd been given an extra.”

 

               “Doesn’t ring a bell.” Victor shrugged and Yurio growled again. Someone really had to teach this kid that growling at your problems like a cornered alley cat wasn’t the way to solve anything or persuade people to do you favors. “I’m sure he’s not that bad.”

 

               “If you think he’s not that bad, then just switch with me. Problem solved.”

 

               “Yura?” Otabeck must have removed his headphones when Yurio had burst into the room. Yurio started and spun around to look at where Otabeck was sitting, legs crossed and headphones hanging around his neck. “I don’t think the administration is going to want you to be switching rooms without at least asking them about it first, but I wouldn’t mind switching if it means that much to you.”

 

               Yurio wavered, his face flickering from a deep scowl to a more neutral expression and then back again before he let out a huff of breath and stalked over to the desk on Victor’s side of the room, dropping himself down onto the chair and propping his feet up on the desk as he got there.

 

               “Don’t worry about it, Beka. I don’t think I would want to deal with Victor and his lovesick moaning either.”

 

               “Hey! I don’t moan!”

 

               “That’s true. He mostly sighs and stares forlornly into the middle distance. It’s quite subdued actually.” Chris dodged the balled up sweater Victor throws at him. “Hey! Don’t be mad at me for just stating the truth!”

 

               “What’s going on in here?” Victor perked up at the sound of Phichit’s voice coming from where Yurio had left the door open in the midst of his hissy fit. Not that he wasn’t happy about getting to see Phichit, but wherever Phichit went…

 

               As if summoned by his very thoughts, Yuri’s head is the next to appear in the doorway behind his friend and Victor feels his heart leap in his chest.

 

               “Yuri!” Victor knows he looks ridiculous. Knows his smile is too wide and that his eyes are sparkling. He knows he looks exactly like what Yurio accuses him of being. A lovesick idiot.

 

               He knows, but he doesn’t care. He is a lovesick idiot and that is just fine with him.

 

               Now if only he could get Yuri to _notice_.

 

               “Hello, Victor. Oh, and Chris, Otabeck, Yurio…” Yuri hovers nervously in the doorway even as Phichit skips into the room and instantly makes himself comfortable with Chris on Victor’s bed. “We heard a loud crash and yelling so Phichit wanted to make sure there wasn’t anything Instagram worthy happening.”

 

               “Just Yurio complaining about his roommate.” Victor provided as he motioned for Yuri to come in and make himself at home. After another ten seconds of hovering, he relents and takes up the chair by Otabeck’s desk. “Who did you end up with?”

 

               “Seung-Gil.” Phichit is the one to supply this answer. “And I ended up with Leo, thank god. Who did you get, Yurio?”

 

               “That prick, JJ.” Yurio was clearly still upset, and Victor notices the other Russian glance at where Otabeck is still fiddling with his laptop quickly before returning to glaring up at the ceiling as though it was to blame for his unhappiness. “Did you know that he brought a guitar with him? A fucking guitar. He is _that_ person. The person that drags a fucking guitar with him through twelve countries just in case he has a chance to be that douche who plays it when no one asks.”

 

               “Then we just have to make sure we don’t give him an opportunity, wanted or unwanted.” Chris reached across Phichit to grab Victor’s pillow and propped it up against the wall so he would have something to lean against. “Has anyone had a chance to scope out where we can have our study group?”

 

               “Seung-Gil said he’d show us a library with study rooms you can borrow by the hour tomorrow.” Yuri was now fiddling with his phone, completely oblivious to Victor still staring at him in quiet admiration. “He also said there’s a restaurant nearby that he likes. I think he might want to see if anyone wants to go to dinner there after we’re done studying.”

 

               “Are you relieved to not have to be the tour guide anymore, Yuri?” Chris’ tone implied innocence, but Victor shot him a warning glare anyway. Not that it would matter. Chris always did do whatever he wanted. “You can spend more time just hanging out. Not having to guide someone in the right direction or translate street signs… Spend some quality time with your friends without being interrupted for another outing around town…”

 

               “I really didn’t mind.” Yuri waves off Chris’ words with a flick of his wrist. “I enjoyed it.”

 

               “Can you ask Seung-Gil if there is a health center with a gym or dance studio somewhere around here?” Yurio pushed at the base of the chair Yuri was on to get his attention. “You know, like the place you showed me in Tokyo.”

 

               “I already asked. I’ll text you the details.” There was a chime from Yurio’s phone ten seconds later. “It looks like our international cultures class is in the afternoon this time. We could check it out tomorrow morning?”

 

               That was interesting.

 

               Victor hesitated. He wanted to invite himself along. He remembered the promise Yuri had made back in Hasetsu, to show Victor where he could exercise on campus. In the hustle of classwork, outings, and Chris having a minor existential crisis when his boyfriend back home had mentioned running into an ex at the market, Victor had completely forgotten to take Yuri up on the offer. It was his own fault. He’d always had a problem with being easily distracted.

 

               And now all he could think about was Yuri in those tight track pants.

 

               Before he could muse on it any further, Phichit was bouncing to his feet, arms stretched over his head and an exaggerated yawn pulling everyone back into the present. It had been a long day. They were all tired and needed to be awake at a decent hour for orientation the next day. It was time for everyone to go back to their own rooms and settle in for what remained of the night.

 

               Victor dreamed of skating that night. Of whirling and dipping wrapped up in Yuri’s strong arms.

 

               It was the best sleep he’d ever had.

 

~

 

               “ **Why are you following me**?” Yurio spun around, hands on his hips and shot Victor a glare so intense he was sure he would have dropped dead then and there if such a thing had been possible.

 

               “ **Who me? I’m not following you.** ” Victor smiled and tried his best to look innocent. If Yurio’s snarl was anything to go by, he was not succeeding. He sighed heavily and lengthened his stride to catch up to the other Russian. He’d been caught now. No point hiding it. “ **Okay, I am following you. You said last night you were going to a gym. I like to exercise. Thus, I am following you to the gym so that I will know where it is. Happy?** ”

 

               “ **You mean you’re following me because you know that’s where your fucking crush is going to be.** ” Victor merely shrugged at the accusation. That was one of the main attractions for being out and about at ‘way too early o’clock’. Yurio was grumpy, but he wasn’t stupid. “ **You are literally the most pathetic human being I’ve ever met. Do all of us a favor, yes? Man up and fucking ask him out.** ”

 

               “ **I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.** ” Victor knew he was being purposefully obstinate. He knew Yurio didn’t believe him for a second, but for once the younger Russian didn’t seem to want to argue. “ **If I’m really that much of a bother I can go back… Or I could if I knew where we were…** ”

 

               Victor had been so focused on keeping Yurio in his sights, he hadn’t thought about keeping track of where they had been going. He felt as though they had traveled enough distance to be on the opposite end of the campus, but other than that, he hadn’t the faintest idea of where he was and he’d left his map back at the dorm. His sweats only had one pocket and that had been taken by his phone and headphones.

 

               “ **You are the most pathetic person I have ever had the misfortune of meeting.** ” Yurio grumbled. “ **You’re here now. You might as well go the rest of the way. Your little boyfriend would be upset with me if he knew I left you out in the cold in the middle of Korea with no way to get back.** ”

 

               Victor wanted to protest that Yuri wasn’t his boyfriend, not yet in any case, but he refrained. He knew enough to recognize when he was teetering on the knife’s edge of Yurio’s patience. Victor was fairly certain he could find his was back or find someone who knew enough English to point him in the right direction eventually. That didn’t mean he enjoyed the thought of wandering around lost for however long it took one of those two things to happen, however.

 

               The rest of the walk was made in comfortable silence. Aside from Otabeck and surprisingly Yuri, Yurio had a way of putting people off. Maybe it was because they were from the same country, spoke the same first language, missed the same places, but Victor found the blonde’s antics didn’t bother him much either. And, for whatever reason, Victor didn’t seem to put Yurio off either, even for all his blustering and griping.

 

               “ **We’re here.** ” Yurio paused at the glass door of a short and wide building after a few more minutes. “ **If you’re going to be gross the whole time I’m going to punch you in the face and you’re going to fucking deserve it.** ”

 

               “ **Duly noted.** ”

 

               “Yurio!” Victor’s heart leapt in his chest and he turned slightly to see Yuri jogging up to them from the direction they’d just come. “Oh, Victor! I didn’t know Yurio invited you.”

 

               “He invited himself. I just let him follow me to make sure he didn’t get lost.” Yurio crossed his arms over his chest as though he was daring Victor to contradict him. “You like saving him. He’s your problem now.”

 

               Without another word Yurio spun on his heel and stalked into the building, leaving Victor and Yuri standing alone together in silence. Yuri was turning that lovely shade of pink that he tended to get when he was flustered and Victor pushed down the butterflies in his stomach to offer up what he hoped was an endearing smile.

 

               Yuri turned another shade darker and Victor mentally congratulated himself.

 

               “I’m starting to think you’re doing this on purpose.” Yuri turned to make his own way into the building and Victor followed close behind. His comment might have been taken as disparaging at first blush, but Victor could hear a hint of something like fondness in the other boy’s tone.

 

               “Trust me, I wish I was. I promise I’m not usually so incompetent at taking care of myself.” Victor allowed his happiness at being in Yuri’s presence again bleed into his voice. “Although, I’m definitely starting to become fond of having you be there to come to my rescue every time. You’re like some kind of fairytale prince!”

 

               “Who, me?” The warmer air inside the building washed over them and Yuri paused a few meters into the lobby in order to look at Victor with the most adorably confused expression on his face. Victor had never been more tempted to just lean forward and sweep another person into a passionate kiss before in his entire life. He laced his fingers behind his back and rocked back on his heels in order to suppress the urge. “I’m nothing special. Just in the right place at the right time, I guess.”

 

               Victor begged to differ. Anyone who thought Yuri Katsuki was anything less than perfect could fight him. Even if that meant Victor had to fight Yuri himself to get his point across.

 

               Maybe some other time.

 

               Yuri shook his head and led the way to the desk in the middle of the room. There were three girls standing guard this morning and the one to the left greeting them enthusiastically and in English.

 

               “Good morning!” She waved them over with a bright smile. “Your friend just came through here a minute ago. There is a dance studio on the second floor and he’s rented out one of the smaller rooms if you would like to join him. Oh, and whichever of you is Victor he said to tell you this: ‘If you aren’t going to be serious, just go back.’ That’s a paraphrasing it a bit, but I’m sure you get the gist.”

 

               “I’m starting to get the idea that Yurio doesn’t like me.” Victor knew that wasn’t the case, but Yuri laughed anyway and anything that could pull out Yuri’s breathtaking laughter was worth it. “I suppose we shouldn’t keep him waiting. He seems like the impatient type.”

 

               “Yes, I suppose you’re right.”

 

~

 

               Yuri was wearing yoga pants.

 

               Underneath the baggy sweatpants he’d had on to protect against the winter weather outside, Yuri had been wearing yoga pants.

 

               Yuri had taken off those sweatpants as soon as they’d gotten to the dance studio Yurio had claimed and he was wearing black yoga pants underneath.

 

               Yuri’s lower half was currently wrapped in skin-tight spandex.

 

               Victor was pretty sure he’d forgotten how to breathe.

 

               He was so distracted that he didn’t see the water bottle flying towards his head until it had struck him right between the eyes.

 

               “ **What the fuck did I tell you about being gross?** ” Victor frowned and rubbed the sore spot on his forehead. Yurio was fuming on the other side of the room. He had much better aim than Victor had given him credit for to throw the bottle so far and still hit his target with such brutal accuracy. “ **Some of us have actual work to do. If you don’t want to work out, go back to the dorm and be gross there where no one has to look at you.** ”

 

               “Sorry, sorry.” Victor spoke in English for Yuri’s benefit and held up his hands in surrender. “I’ll just be over here… Doing some crunches or something. Don’t mind me.”

 

               “What was that about?” Yuri sounded concerned as he stood in the middle of the room, looking back and forth from Victor to Yurio in bewilderment.

 

               “Nothing. A Russian thing. Don’t worry.” Yurio shoots one last warning look in Victor’s direction before turning his full attention to Yuri. “I want to try to work my solo piece again. Something still feels a little off in the second half.”

 

               Yuri pauses and Victor can tell the other man isn’t completely convinced by Yurio’s explanation. He waits, muscles tense, for Yuri to make his choice. To press or just to let it go. Half of Victor is nervous about Yuri finding out exactly where Victor had been staring. The other half sounds a lot like Chris and is whispering that it might be a _good_ thing for Yuri to find out.

 

               In the end, Yuri’s sensible side seems to win out and he turns away from Victor’s corner to focus on Yurio.

 

               “You’re right.” Victor watches curiously as Yuri moves over to the barre at one end of the room, Yurio already placing his leg on it and lowering his body into a deep stretch. “There’s something awkward about your transition from your double cabriole into your step sequence. Maybe we should add a glissade to make it seem smoother?”

 

               “Maybe. It does feel choppy the way it is now. We can try it and you can tape me and I’ll send it to my instructor for review.” Yurio sounded thoughtful and serious for the first time since Victor had met him.

 

               Victor had sprawled out on the floor by this point. He glanced over at where the other two boys were stretching as a wave of curiosity washing over him. He never had spared a thought for why Yurio would have reserved a dance studio instead of heading into the main gym and its traditional equipment. Even though he knew he was more likely to get nothing more than a fresh set of insults, he couldn’t help but ask.

 

               “What are you working on?”

 

               Yurio glared at him as Victor expected he would, and it was Yuri who answered.

 

               “We’re working on his routines for his final exam. His dance professor is going to give him his final when we’re in Russia so he doesn’t exactly have a lot of time to prepare.” Yuri explained patiently while Yurio made faces and stuck his tongue out at Victor. “Minako-sensei was letting him use her studio to practice in back in Tokyo and I ran into him there one evening. I offered to help since there was no guarantee of finding a dance instructor that speaks either English or Russian either here or in China.”

 

               “You dance?” Victor knew there were things about Yuri’s personal life he didn’t know yet. They had only met a month ago, after all. He just hadn’t been expecting a secret dance background to be one of those things.

 

               Although the way Yuri’s body always seemed to flow gracefully with even the smallest of movements should have clued him in long ago.

 

               “Not so much anymore, but I was classically trained when I was a kid. It helped with the figure skating.” Yuri shrugged. “Yurio is much better at it. I’m really just here as an extra pair of eyes to make little corrections.”

 

               “Of course I’m better at it.” Yurio scoffed, but there was still a softer edge that took most of the bite out of his words. “I’ve danced in the corps de ballet with the Bolshoi Ballet since I was thirteen. I’d be there right now if it weren’t for my parents insisting I complete some kind of degree.”

 

               “Wow…” Victor was truly impressed. “My Papa took me to Moscow a few years ago to see the Bolshoi Ballet perform _The Taming of the Shrew_. It was one of the best performances I’ve ever seen.”

 

               “Would you mind letting me see your routine?” Victor anticipated an outright rejection, but to his surprise, Yurio rose up out of his stretch and nodded.

 

               “It wouldn’t hurt to have a second pair of eyes. What do you think, Yuri?”

 

               “Oh, um… I don’t see how it could hurt.” Yuri seemed startled to find himself the center of attention again. “Right, let’s warm up a bit more and then I’ll set up the music and we can take it from the top.”

 

                Victor settled into to do some sets of crunches while he waited, lest he wind up on the receiving end of another water bottle to the face for staring at the curve of Yuri’s ass as the other man unintentionally showed off exactly how flexible he was. Turns out, it was a lot more flexible than Victor had fantasized.

 

               It was going to take every ounce of willpower Victor possessed to get through today without embarrassing himself…

 

~

 

               “I feel like you are not taking my emergency seriously.” Yuri was stretched out on his stomach on the floor in the study room they had commandeered later that evening. Phichit, Seung-Gil, and he had been the first to arrive and the Korean man had assisted with securing the room before excusing himself to make a quick coffee run, leaving Yuri and Phichit to hold down the fort while they waited for everyone else to arrive.

 

               “I feel like you realizing you having more than friendship thought about Victor is not an emergency.” Phichit shot back from where he was sitting cross-legged in the chair next to his friend. “You do know literally everyone figured out you have feelings for him weeks ago, right? In fact, I think the only person who _doesn’t_ know is Victor.”

 

               Yuri’s response to that was to bury his head in his arms and groan.

 

               “Out of curiosity, what was it that finally prodded you into confronting those tingly feelings you get when you look at him?”

 

               “I do _not_ get tingly feelings when I look at him!” Yuri raised his head and glared at his friend with all the strength he could muster. Phichit did not seem phased.

 

               “Yuri. This is your best friend you are speaking with. Trust me. I know all about the tingles.” Phichit was grinning now in a way that was making Yuri regret starting this conversation. Why had he thought asking Phichit for advice was a good idea? He should know better by now. “Back to my question. What happened today that opened your eyes to your crazy obvious crush?”

 

               “Did you know he can dance ballet?”

 

               Phichit froze, mouth slightly agape, eyes wide and staring at Yuri so intently he could practically see the wheels turning in his friend’s head. Yuri felt heat creeping up his neck as the silence stretched on for what felt like hours, but was most likely only thirty seconds.

 

               “Oh, you are so _screwed_!” Phichit was laughing now even as Yuri went to bury his face back in his arms. “Oh my god. This is amazing. This is better than my last three birthdays and Christmases combined! _Please_ tell me how Yurio reacted to that!”

 

               “Surprisingly well, actually.” Yuri turned his head to the side enough so his words wouldn’t be too muffled. “Victor is a half decent choreographer. Shit, he’s more than half decent. He’s definitely better than me… Phichit… You should have seen him _move_.”

 

               Yuri’s voice trailed off there and he knew he was staring off into space like an idiot, but he couldn’t help it. Images of their earlier impromptu dance workshop kept flitting through his head like fever dreams. Victor on the floor, legs spread in a perfect forward split. Victor, leaping through the air, legs straight and head high. Victor, spinning and bowing and tilting his hips in a way that drove Yuri’s hormones crazy as he lifted his right leg in a perfect arabesque.

 

               Victor, who was a giant dork. A big puppy dog all grins and laughter and silly puns. Embarrassing stories and casual touches and getting lost and needing someone to lead him back to the right path. Victor who could move with power and grace in a way that had Yuri hearing music even when there was none.

 

               Yuri had been fighting the edges of attraction since they had met. Today the walls he had built had come tumbling down in dramatic fashion as Yuri had been privy to yet another side of the Russian man.

 

               “I don’t think I should need to tell you that you aren’t the only one silently pining, do I?” Phichit was calmer now, looking down at Yuri with warm support. “Hey, I know you get anxious about this kind of thing, but Victor is one hundred percent into you. Don’t try to rationalize away all the signs like you always do when you get uncomfortable about someone possibly liking you.”

 

               “You are the second person in as many weeks that has told me I do that.” Yuri grumbled.

 

               “That’s because you totally do it like all the time. Anyway. Now that you’ve had your big internal revelation, what are you going to do about it?”

 

               “Nothing.”

 

               “Yuri!”

 

               Yuri knew Phichit was about to give him a lecture, but he was mercifully saved by someone knocking on the door to the study room. The door automatically locked when closed and Seung-Gil had taken the key with him when he’d left since it was his student ID on the line if it were to be misplaced. Yuri lurched to his feet to let whoever was on the other side, happy to have something to stop Phichit from hounding him for now.

 

               He opened the door and before he could blink he had his arms full of 180 centimeters of excited Russian to contend with.

 

               “Yuri!”

 

               “Victor!?” Yuri had stumbled back from the force of Victor’s hug. He found his arms settling on the taller man’s waist before his brain could catch up to his body’s actions.

 

               “Yuri! I missed you!” Victor only tightened where his arms were wrapped around Yuri’s neck as Yuri tried to wriggle away.

 

               “You saw me in class less than an hour ago. You haven’t had enough time to miss me.” Yuri felt a curl of warmth in the pit of his stomach and he forced himself to push the feeling down. Victor was a clingy, happy, dramatic person. This didn’t mean anything. No matter what Phichit seemed to think.

 

               “[Aw! He missed you!]” He could hear the sound of a camera shutter from somewhere behind him and he knew that Phichit was sporting his most evil smile without even having to look. “[This is so going on Instagram. Hashtag ‘Too fucking cute’.]”

 

               “[Phichit. I will murder you.]”

 

               “Oh! Did you take a picture!” Yuri stumbled as Victor released him in favor of skipping over to Phichit’s side, looking over the Thai man’s shoulder in order to get a better view of the phone in his hands. “Let me see! Perfect! Send it to me!”

 

               “I’ll tag you in it!” Phichit’s fingers were flying over the screen and Yuri knew he would never be able to get the device out of his hands in time no matter how hard he tackled his friend in the attempt.

 

               “Thanks!” Victor’s smile was wide and enthusiastic, his eyes bright with joy. Yuri felt his stomach do a complicated flip.

 

               He could barely last eleven seconds without losing it. How was he supposed to last another eleven months?

 

               Phichit was wrong. He wasn’t screwed. He’d passed screwed about four exits ago. This was a whole new level of completely and hopelessly fucked.

 

               What the hell was he going to do?

 

~

 

               “ _I’m going to do it. I’m going to ask him out. Officially._ ” Victor was sitting on the floor of the common area in the dorm with Chris at his side and other students scattered throughout the room so deep in their own work they were paying them no attention. Victor still didn’t trust it, though. None of the students close to Yuri spoke French so it was still the safest language to converse in when discussing Victor’s infatuation in public.

 

               “ _Well, it’s about time_.”

 

               They had been in Seoul for three days now. Three days of Victor meeting Yuri and Yurio in the dance studio across campus and working with the two of them to refine Yurio’s exhibition pieces for his dance final. Three days of stretching and dusting off his old dance training from his figure skating days.

 

               Three days spent falling deeper in love with the way Yuri looked with his glasses off, sweaty bangs falling in his eyes. Three days listening to him laugh at Yurio’s constant complaints and three days of having endless excuses to reach out and touch. A hand on the small of Yuri’s back to correct his posture. Gentle pressure against a calf as Yuri reached to gain the last few centimeters of stretch needed to maintain a standing split. Fingertips on the nape of Yuri’s neck to remind him to keep his head up.

 

               Sure, they were supposed to be there to help Yurio, but for once the blonde didn’t seem to mind sharing, watching with ambition burning in those green eyes as Victor used Yuri’s body to model a specific pose or motion he wanted Yurio to mimic.

 

               He’d been just as surprised as everyone else to find that he actually had an innate knack for choreography. Who knew?

 

               “ _How should I do it? Do you think he has a favorite flower? I mean, I’m sure he does. How can I find out what it is? Do you think Phichit would know?_ ”

 

               “ _Why don’t we save the flowers for the second date?_ ” Chris suggested. “ _You of all people know how shy he can be. Try inviting him to dinner, or a walk around campus. Oh! I think there’s supposed to be a film festival at a theater not too far from here over the weekend. See if he wants to go and then, once you get there, just give him your best puppy dog eyes and say ‘Hey, Yuri, why don’t we just go ahead and call this our first official date? What do you say?’"_

 

               “ _That… Is not a bad idea._ ” Victor was quick to admit Chris did have a point. Yuri was prone to withdrawing when he felt uncomfortable. Maybe a public declaration wasn’t the best plan he’d ever had. “ _Oh! Valentine’s day is coming up. Do you think I should get him something?_ ”

 

               “ _That is something you should ask Phichit. He’d know best what the tradition for that holiday is in Japan._ ” Chris raised an eyebrow at his friend. “ _You know… My birthday is Valentine’s day. I’ve been working with our favorite Korean to try and find an appropriate venue. Perhaps you could put the moves on your boyfriend there? Get a little alcohol in him. Loosen him up a bit._ ”

 

               “Chris! You’re a genius!” Victor shouted that last statement in English, completely ignoring the stunned looks that were being sent their way at his outburst. Really, they should all be used to him by now in Victor’s opinion.

 

               “Tell me something I don’t know.” Chris was smirking now, a mischievous expression on his face. “Now, help this genius with his cultural studies homework, please?”

 

               Victor was happy to oblige.

 

               Even though he wasn’t going to be much help now, distracted as he was with thoughts of exactly what might happen at Chris’ party.

 

               He couldn’t wait to find out.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... Instead of jumping right into Chris' party, how about we have a cute little Victuri date instead? Party shenanigans will be in the next chapter!
> 
> I also had a ridiculous amount of fun researching the Olympic Park in Seoul where this chapter is set. Definitely adding it to my list of places to see!
> 
> As always:
> 
> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Enjoy!

February – South Korea

 

               Two days before Chris’ party, Victor made his move.

 

               Or, Yuri made his move and Victor moved with him.

 

               Seung-Gil’s parents had gotten tickets for the group to go to a big concert being held in the renovated Olympic Park from where Seoul had hosted the 1988 Summer Olympics. Normally Victor would have politely refused the invitation, he had two papers due in the upcoming week and with Chris’ party looming he wanted to get his schoolwork as caught up as he could, but he’d felt bad. Plus, all his friends had agreed to go. He didn’t want to be left in an empty dorm by himself even less than he wanted to go to the concert.

 

               It seemed Yuri had been in much the same position.

 

               The group had met on the fringes of Yonsei University to walk to the station where they would catch a ride on the public transport to their destination. If all went well and they stayed on schedule to catch the appropriate trains and buses, it would take roughly an hour and a half to get to their destination.

 

               He found himself hanging back, taking a seat towards the back of their usual group. Whenever Yuri was in the group with him, he always held out hope that the other man would choose to sit by him, or at least close enough to make conversation easy Sometimes he did. Sometimes he didn’t.

 

               For whatever reason, today was one of the days he did.

 

               “You look like you want to be here about as much as I do.” Yuri sank down into the seat next to Victor and he felt his heart slam into his ribs in response. It wasn’t very often Yuri took the initiative to start a conversation with him and Victor savored the moment every time it did happen.

 

               “Korean hip hop is not exactly my preferred brand of music, but I’m pretty sure Seung-Gil actually sounded excited about it.” That had been a surprise Victor hadn’t seen coming at all. The Korean student had actually sounded truly excited when extending the invitation to the core study group. “It sounded like his parents had gone through a lot of trouble to get the tickets, too. And Chris probably would have carried me here if he had to, even if I had said ‘no’. I’m starting to suspect he just likes have someone around that can understand him when he gossips about everyone in French.”

 

               “You might be on to something there.” Yuri looked as though he was relaxing and Victor ignored where Phichit and Chris were crowded into a pair of seats a few rows up, whispering and giggling and shooting them looks every so often. If Yuri wasn’t bothered by them, then he wouldn’t be either. “I’ve had more than enough of Seung-Gil’s musical tastes in the last week and a half. Phichit made me come, though. Something about not being able to enjoy himself if he knew I was sitting in the dorm alone and sulking.”

 

               “But is it really sulking if you are happy about being left behind?” Victor asked and Yuri laughed in response. “You know, I always pegged Seung-Gil as someone who’s tastes tended more towards classical music.”

 

               “At least I’m not the only one that thought that.” The train was loud and Yuri shifted closer so they wouldn’t have to speak so loud to be heard. Victor resisted the urge to put an arm around the Japanese man’s shoulders. “Maybe we’ll get a chance to look around the park before the concert begins.”

 

               “Maybe.” The last bump as the train pulled to a stop to exchange passengers caused Victor to slide close enough to Yuri that their shoulders were now touching. Neither pulled away.

 

               They stay that way the rest of the ride, leaning into each other and speaking in quiet voices about everything and nothing.

 

               There is a break in the public transit system where they have to disembark from the train and walk a few block to a bus station to complete the rest of the journey. Yuri takes the seat next to Victor on the bus as well, close to the back and separated from the rest of the group by two aisles as everyone else crowds themselves into the scant seating available towards the front. Victor can’t seem to bring himself to care that they might be considered rude, ignoring their friends in such a way.

 

               Yuri’s eyes sparkle behind his glasses as they continue their conversation. There is more space on the bus than there was on the train to sprawl out into, but Victor doesn’t use it. Shoulders touching, faces close, attention solely on Yuri. He wouldn’t be surprised if they missed their stop as he can’t be bothered to pay any heed to the periodic messages playing over the intercom system. It’s all in Korean anyway. He wouldn’t have understood even if he’d known what to listen for.

 

               Spending the whole day pressed against Yuri on a foreign bus doesn’t seem like a terrible idea either.

 

               Something is different about Yuri today. He’s more confident, more open. As they disembark and step out in front of the entrance to the Olympic Park, Victor can’t take his eyes off the other man. Suddenly even the tiniest bit of space between them feel sacrilegious. But they are in public and with their friends and Yuri pulls back a bit as they gather in a group in front of the World Peace Gate, the plaza around them filled with parents linking hands with their children to keep them close, tourists snapping photos and chattering in more languages that Victor can place, and teenagers bunching together in groups laughing and pushing and generally enjoying the bright Sunday despite the winter chill that still hangs in the air.

 

               “The gates to the venue open in about three hours.” Seung-Gil had herded them towards an information center off to their left. “I thought we might want to take some time to look around before we needed to go find our seats.”

 

               “Good plan!” Phichit surveyed the group in front of him. He looked pensive for a brief moment before offering up his typical bright smile. “We can all split up, see whatever we want and then meet at the venue about twenty minutes before the gates open? We’ve got the group text if anyone needs anything, but this place seems easy enough to navigate.”

 

               “It is a major international tourist destination.” Seung-Gil pointed out. “A high number of the staff here speak English and there are maps and guides available in many languages. There is an art museum here holding an exhibition I wouldn’t mind taking a look at. If anyone gets stuck somewhere and needs translation, just let me know or you can just find me there.”

 

               “Oh! There’s a flower garden and a rose plaza!” Guang Hong had grabbed a map from the top of a stack of them and we both pointing out something in the bottom corner. “Phichit, Leo, Chris! I’ll bet I can get some great shots for my photography class there.”

 

               “We can be your models again!” Phichit grabbed Chris’ wrist in one hand and Leo’s in the other, already tugging them in the direction Guang Hong had indicated.

 

               Victor wasn’t sure where Otabeck and Yurio had gone. Apparently in the commotion of everyone going their separate ways, the pair had wandered off on their own without saying anything. Probably because no one could follow them if no one knew where they were going.

 

               It took about ten seconds, but Victor eventually came to a realization at the same time as Yuri if the ‘deer in a headlights’ look his was currently sporting was any indication.

 

               They were alone. Together. For three hours.

 

               Victor couldn’t believe he had almost decided not to come. This was turning into the best day of his life!

 

               “So…They just ran off, didn’t they?” Smooth, Victor, real smooth.

 

               “They sure did.” Yuri was a little more on edge now, his posture a little stiffer, the space between them a little wider, but he wasn’t radiating nerves at the current moment. There was still a softness in his eyes and a smile on his face. Victor forced himself to relax in turn. “We could follow Phichit, Guang Hong, Leo, and Chris if you want. Or we could do something else?”

 

               “Let’s do something else.” What that something else could possibly be Victor didn’t have the faintest clue. So long as it didn’t involve reuniting with their friends until the last possible second, Victor quite frankly didn’t care.

 

               “Let’s get lost!” The idea came to Victor with all the force and tact of a runaway train. Impulsive decisions were his forte after all. He was about to grab Yuri’s hand and skip off deep into the park with him, when the confused look on Yuri’s face caused him to pause. Right, Yuri wasn’t exactly the drop everything and skip off into the sunset type. “I didn’t mean like really get lost. I meant like let’s just walk around for a bit. If we see something interesting, we can get a closer look. If not, we can just stretch our legs and take in the sights. So long as we don’t leave the park we shouldn’t have any issues finding our way back eventually.”

 

               “That… sounds like fun.” Yuri’s smile was back and it was wider this time. Victor felt his heart flutter at the sight. The Japanese man reached out and grabbed a map from the same stack Guang Hong had gotten his from and tucked the folded piece of paper in his back pocket. “I like the walking around aimlessly aspect of it, but, just in case, I’m going to bring this. That way if we do get lost for real, we have something to help us find our way back.”

 

               “There you go, saving me from myself again.” Victor winks and Yuri blushes, though it seems to be less intense than usual. Maybe Yuri is starting to feel more comfortable with Victor’s flirting. Victor hopes this is the case.

 

               As much as he wanted to reach out and take Yuri’s hand before, he stops himself before going through with it. They have a lot of time to kill and being too enthusiastic up front might put an end to all the progress Victor has already made. It’s one thing to absentmindedly reach out to touch each other in the dance studio. There it’s just one person correcting the other’s posture or drawing attention to a sloppy free leg or turn. Plus, Yurio is a magnificent chaperone. Any hint of hands lingering a smidge too long or a tinge too close to below the belt and the teenager would stomp his feet, or make gagging noises, or, on much more rare occasions, throw another water bottle directly at Victor’s head.

 

               “Are you excited to be going back to Russia in a few months?” Yuri begins the conversation as they wander away from the park’s entrance and down a trail that looks like it leads away from the bigger buildings and more towards a nature reserve. “Do you miss it?”

 

               “Do you miss Japan?” Victor asks less to tease and more because he really wants to know.

 

               “Not yet. I know South Korea and Japan have two completely different cultures and languages and all that, but being in Seoul kind of feels a lot like being in Tokyo still. I don’t understand nearly as much, but the whole neon lights and crowded streets thing is similar enough.” Yuri sticks his hands in the pockets of his coat and Victor does the same with his. With the trees blocking out some of the sun, it is a few degrees cooler in this direction than in the open space of the park’s entrance. “Besides, you’ve been away from Russia longer than I’ve been away from Japan.”

 

               “I miss parts of it.” Victor admits. “My parents and I aren’t super close. They’ve always been very busy, but I do miss knowing they are only on the other side of the city if I need them. What I really miss the most would have to be my dog, though.”

 

               “You have a dog?” Yuri sounds excited now and Victor remembers Yuri telling him about the dog he’d lost the year before when they had been on the train to Hasetsu.

 

               “Yes. It’s kind of funny, actually. He’s a poodle, like your dog was. Except Makkachin is a standard poodle so he’s definitely much bigger. I’ve had him since I was fourteen, so he’s getting older and slower these days, but he still tries to act like he’s a puppy.” Victor is suddenly struck by inspiration. “Do you want to see a picture?”

 

               “Yes!”

 

               Yuri looks excited now as Victor grabs his phone and removes his hands from his pockets. They step to the side of the path and come to a stop, huddled together over Victor’s phone as he pulls up the folder that contains all his Makkachin photos. Once again, Yuri’s shoulder rests against Victor’s and neither boy bother to pull away.

 

               “Oh, wow. He looks just like Vic-chan!” Yuri reached out and began to swipe through the photos on Victor’s phone. Every so often an enthusiastic swipe would have the tip of Yuri’s index finger brush against where Victor’s fingers were curled around the phone’s edge to keep it in place. Victor tried not to squeal in delight every time this occurred. “You’re right, he’s quite a bit bigger than Vic-chan was. Our rooms at the onsen are so small. It’d be a tight squeeze to get this handsome baby to fit.”

 

               “You’d think so, but Makkachin is very well behaved. My flat back in St. Petersburg isn’t large by any means, but we get along in there just fine.” Victor knows he should offer up his phone to Yuri so he can swipe through the rest of the photos in a position that is less awkward that having to reach over Victor’s arm to reach the screen, but he doesn’t. If he gives up the phone Yuri might move away. He never wants Yuri to move away again. “There’s a dog park a few blocks from my flat that he just loves. I take him there every weekend and study while he goes and charms all the lady dogs. When we get to Russia I’ll pick him up from my parents and let you meet him.”

 

               “That would be perfect!” Yuri’s smile is brighter and warmer than the sun could ever hope to be and even though the temperature is hovering at around 7 degrees Celsius Victor has never felt the chill less. “Oh, but your parents really wouldn’t mind? Is the dorm going to allow him to be there? You shouldn’t go through all that trouble of picking him up and taking him back just for me.”

 

               “It wouldn’t _just_ be for you.” Victor admits. That is true. He misses his dog something fierce. There was zero chance of him not getting Makkachin while he was in Russia simply on that fact alone. “I still have the lease on my flat. My parents insisted so I wouldn’t have to move all my things back to their place and I would have somewhere to stay when I got back without have to shop around again. I’m also fairly fond of the place, so it’s worth it if only to make sure no one else slips it out from under my nose while I’m gone. When I have Makkachin with us, I can stay there. The administration seems pretty lax about where we are and what we do so long as we don’t make complete idiots of ourselves and show up to class on time.”

 

               “That’s true.” Yuri hits the end of the gallery and pulls his hands away. Victor feels a shiver run through the other man’s body through where their shoulders are still maintaining a point of contact between them.

 

               “We should keep walking. We’ll stay warmer that way.” Yuri nods in agreement and they move back onto the main path.

               Their shoulders are still pressed together.

 

               Victor forgets how to breathe again and this time there is no Yurio around to save him.

 

               He wouldn’t have it any other way.

 

~

 

               They walk around aimlessly until it gets too dark to see.

 

               The conversation flows easily. Victor is reminded of jogging down a grey beach in Hasetsu. Of skating together in an empty rink. Of soaking together alone in the hot springs. Of a train ride from Kyoto that had felt like it ended too soon.

 

               When the two of them are alone together it’s like the cloak of polite distance Yuri wears finally falls away and Victor can see his true brilliance unobstructed by his anxiety. He would give up every penny he had, follow the Japanese man to the moon and back, dedicate his life to Yuri’s comfort, whatever it took to give Yuri every opportunity possible to let this side of him shine.

 

               An hour after separating from their friends, they stumble upon a picnic area.

 

               The view is lovely and there are tables placed out in the sunshine so they are warm enough. Yuri digs some snacks out of his messenger bag, prepared for everything as always, and they share his stash of granola bars and dried fruit as they sit across from each other.

 

               They stay on safe topics at first. Discussions about their respective classwork, suggestions for what to work on with their next session with Yurio, and general gossip about their fellow classmates.

 

               Then the conversation turns to Chris’ party and Yuri gets strangely fidgety.

 

               “Has Chris told you anything about what the party is going to be like?” Yuri had taken his gloves off in order to eat, and he was now fiddling with them on the tabletop.

 

               “He hasn’t told me much. I think he wants everyone to be surprised, but I’m sure it’s going to be big.” People had always said Victor had a flare for the dramatic. Those people had clearly never met Chris. “I’ve heard stories about his parties from years past, but it’ll be nice to get a chance to go to one in person instead of hearing about it secondhand through the internet.”

 

               “Hm...” Yuri hums but doesn’t say anything further and Victor panics as he realizes the other man is withdrawing into himself again. Damn it. They had been doing so well.

 

               “I take it large parties aren’t your thing, are they?”

 

               Yuri blushes, but stops fidgeting and looks Victor in the eye once more. Nailed it.

 

               “Surely you’ve noticed by now, but I don’t exactly do well in large crowds.” Yuri cringes as though it is physically painful for him to admit. “Phichit is much better at being a social butterfly than I can ever manage. I always feel like I’m dragging him down when we go to thing like that together. I do have to go, of course. Chris is always so nice and friendly to me. I wouldn’t want to hurt his feelings by missing his party.”

 

               “You aren’t dragging anyone down. Chris would love to have you there in any capacity, and Phichit seems capable of entertaining himself just fine even if you just want to hide in a corner the entire night.” Victor wants to pat himself on the back as Yuri’s expression lifts. There, he’d said something right. Crisis averted. “I’d like to see you there. Chris can be a tad… Dramatic when he gets like this. It would be nice to have someone reasonable to speak to.”

 

               “I don’t know if anyone has told you this, but you aren’t exactly subtle either.” Yuri nudges Victor’s knee with his own playfully under the table and Victor feels a flush creeping up the back of his neck. “I would assume an extravagant spectacle would be right up your alley.”

 

               “Yuri! I’m wounded you would think of me like that!” Victor places a hand over his heart in mock hurt. Yuri laughs then, a true laugh. Eyes closed, arms wrapped around his stomach. Victor allows himself to do the same. He felt like he hadn’t truly laughed in years. Maybe he hadn’t. He was doing it now, though. All thanks to a shy Japanese boy he’d met by chance.

 

               “I know I might not seem like it, but I do like to spend time being quiet and reserved occasionally.” Victor wasn’t lying at all. Not that anyone ever believed him when he said as much. He did too good of a job projecting the outward appearance of someone who thrives on drama and being the center of attention.

 

               He couldn’t pinpoint exactly when he had decided that this was the mask he was going to make his own, but he had been that way for as long as he could remember at this point. It was refreshing to let it slip for a change.

 

               “You hide it well.” There was teasing lilt to Yuri’s voice, but Victor could tell he was still intensely serious. “Okay, so you have hidden depths. Makes sense.”

 

               “Don’t we all?” Victor’s earlier intention of keeping the conversation light had faded. Yuri didn’t seem to want him to be bright, bubbly Victor all the time. It was like the Japanese man’s hesitant openness was calling out to Victor to reciprocate in his own way. “You know, you don’t have to always pretend like you’re comfortable if you’re not… I mean, at least not around me. I won’t judge you.”

 

               Yuri paused then and Victor waited with bated breath as he watched emotions play over Yuri’s features, each one melding into the next before Victor had a chance to pinpoint exactly what they were.

 

               Eventually Yuri’s face softened again, body open and eyes sparkling behind those blue frames.

 

               “Thanks, Victor.”

 

               There was something else. Some question Victor could sense Yuri was yearning to ask, and this time Victor waited patiently for it. Pushing Yuri didn’t seem to work. Maybe letting Yuri come to him would.

 

               “Did you want to go to Chris’ party with me?”

 

               Victor felt dizzy. Could Yuri really be asking what he thought he was asking?

 

               “Like as friends or…?” Victor couldn’t help it. He had to know. He had to press to get this answer.

 

               Yuri bit his bottom lip and dropped his gaze to where he was still fiddling with the gloves in his hands. Victor held his breath. He could feel something slipping and sliding in their established relationship. Everything was fuzzy around the edges, waiting for Yuri’s response.

 

               “Like as friends… Like as friends who could be… Could be more than that? Eventually. Maybe.”

 

               Victor almost punched into the air in joy, but held back at the last second, instead settling on knocking knees with Yuri under the table again and offering up what he hoped would be taken as a genuine smile. Yuri might not be one hundred percent there yet, but it was clear now that Victor was now not the only one of the pair who might be secretly hoping there could be more.

 

               “Nothing would make me happier.”

 

~

 

               “[ _You_ asked _him_ out!?]”

 

               Yuri was currently hold his messenger bag in his arms and he took the opportunity to bury his face in it.

 

               Victor and he had missed the concert, too wrapped up in spending time together to notice the time until it was far too late. By the time Phichit had called Yuri frantic as they had missed their appointment for meeting up with the rest of the group, it was too late to be there in time at all, so their tickets had been given away to two teenagers that had been hanging around the entrance gate. Yuri hadn’t minded much.

 

               Of course, as soon as they had met up with everyone in time to catch the last performance at the Music Fountain back by the Peace Gate before leaving, he’d been overwhelmed with feelings of guilt for leaving Phichit without any warning. Even knowing the Thai man wouldn’t care and never held a grudge when Yuri would sometimes flake on him wasn’t enough to quell the dark tide, so he’d compromised and agreed to sit with Phichit on the journey back to campus.

 

               He was regretting this decision more than a little at the current moment.

 

               “[I didn’t ask him out!]” Yuri protested. It was the truth… Or half of the truth? Or… Well, Yuri wasn’t entirely sure _what_ had happened at the picnic table a few hours previous. It was almost like he had been possessed, saying those things to Victor and asking if they could attend Chris’ party together. “[I just asked if he wanted to go to Chris’ party with me. As friends!]”

 

               “[Friends with benefits, perhaps.]” Yuri groaned and moved on from just hiding in his bag to actively using it to try and suffocate himself. ‘[You just told me you asked him to go with you as friend who maybe, kind of/sort of could be something more than friends. Possibly. If you can swallow down your anxiety long enough to let it happen.]”

 

               “[I don’t know why I said that!]” Yuri tilted his head enough to he could glare at where his friend was typing away cheerfully on his phone. “[I think I need an exorcism. I must have been possessed by a demon or something. That’s the only explanation I can think of.]”

 

               “[More like possessed by Victor’s fine ass.]”

 

               “[Phichit!]” Yuri shot bolt upright and smacked his friend on the shoulder, glancing around in a blind panic to make sure none of their friends were paying them any attention. The bus was crowded and they’d split up for the most part. He caught a glimpse of Victor and Chris towards the front of the vehicle, deep in an animated conversation in French and allowed himself to relax at least a little. “[Don’t say his name! He’ll know we’re talking about him!]”

 

               “[Calm down, calm down. I doubt he heard anything.]” Phichit waved his hand at Yuri’s distress. “[Stop trying to talk yourself out of this. He said ‘yes’, right? He looked happy when you subtly insinuated there might be something out there more than simple friendship, yes?]”

 

               Yuri thought over the moment in his mind again. Felt Victor’s knees knocking into his under the table. Saw the smile split his face and the light in his blue eyes. Heard the deeper rumble in his voice as he’d said nothing could have made him happier.

 

               Victor _had_ been happy. Yuri had made him happy.

 

               Yuri’s stomach danced and he could feel the tug of a grin against his lips even as he tried to suppress it.

 

               “[Yes. Yes, I think he was.]”

 

               “[Crisis solved, then. You just go to the party with him and let whatever happens, happen.]” Phichit clapped Yuri across the back. “[You left it open ended enough and he’s never really pressured you before. I doubt he would start doing it now. Feel it out. See where it could go. Test the waters. If you don’t want to jump in right now, we’ve got time.]”

 

               “[Thanks, Phichit. How do you always know what I need to hear?]”

 

               “[It’s a gift.]” Phichit sat back, pleased at talking Yuri out of yet another panic attack.

 

               “[So, tell me again. How did you manage to end up on the literal opposite end of the park from where you were supposed to be and somehow _not_ notice you’d missed the concert until it was more than halfway over? Did you lose yourself in Victor’s beautiful eyes?]”

 

               “Phichit!”

 

~

 

               “ _So for all your grand plans, Yuri was the one that asked you out in the end._ ” If Victor had to hazard a guess, he would have to say Chris might be more excited about this recent development than Victor was. And Victor was very excited. “ _I think there’s some kind of poetic irony here._ ”

 

               “ _He does have this wonderful tendency of surprising me when I least expect it. Not that I mind. I would take a surprise like that a million times over. Once a day, every day for the rest of my life. No, I take that back. Twice a day. At least. Bare minimum._ ”

 

               This time Victor wasn’t exaggerating in the slightest. Yuri’s surprises were like sunshine on a rainy day. Warm and bright and welcome.

 

               “ _I would tell you that you need to chill, at least a little bit, but I’m sure you wouldn’t listen._ ” Victor nods in assent. He’s not sure exactly when he’s going to calm down, he knows he must eventually, but he doesn’t have any idea of when that might happen. It won’t be soon. It might not be ever for all that he knows it would be impractical to live his entire life riding high on Yuri Katsuki. “ _I’m happy for you, though. All things considered, the two of you make a halfway decent pair._ ”

 

               “ _We do, don’t we?_ ” Victor risks a glance down to the other end of the bus where Phichit and Yuri are having an intense conversation in Japanese. He wonders if they are talking about him. Stops himself. He knows they are. Yuri is bright red and Phichit is prodding him in the side and, of course, Phichit is teasing Yuri about their upcoming date. Yuri tells Phichit everything. Victor’s heart swells as Yuri grins despite Phichit’s teasing. He looks happy. Content. Pleased even.

 

               “ _You are going to be utterly insufferable for the next day and a half._ ” It’s not a question. It’s a statement. A fact. Chris rolls his eyes as Victor does nothing but shrug in response. What else is there to say? Victor is in love.

 

               That thought hits him with the force of a speeding bullet train.

 

               Victor isn’t just infatuated. He doesn’t have a crush. He is smitten, enraptured, besotted. He is captivated and enchanted and numerous other synonyms.

 

               Victor is in love. With a man he’s known for barely more than a month. A man he’s going to have to say goodbye to at the end of the year.

 

               A man he now desperately wants to never have to say goodbye to.

 

               “ _Holy shit._ ”

 

               “ _Uh-oh. You’ve got that ‘I’ve made an important, life changing realization about myself’ look again._ ” Chris lean forward so that he is firmly in Victor’s line of vision, green eyes running over Victor’s face as though he would be able to read exactly what Victor was thinking just from that. “ _What did you just realize, Victor?_ ”

 

               “ _Chris… I think I’m in love with him._ ” Victor pauses. Thinks it over. Comes to the conclusion that what he’d said was not a true statement. Amends it. “ _I take that back. I **am** in love with him._ ”

 

               Chris stares. Look at Victor. Looks down the bus at were Yuri is laughing and pushing Phichit as they continue to babble on in Japanese. Looks back at Victor again. Looks out the window for some reason, and then returns his gaze to where Victor is waiting, eyes wide, breaths short, heart pounding.

 

               “ _Holy shit, indeed._ ”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Time for Chris' birthday!
> 
> Also, just in case, there is a brief description of an anxiety attack towards the end. Not super detailed, but it's there so I just wanted to put it out there.
> 
> As always, thanks to everyone who has left a kudos or a comment! They make me so happy. ^_^

February – South Korea

 

               Victor isn’t panicking. Victor Nikiforov doesn’t panic. He is always calm, cool and collected. The picture of perfect poise and grace. He rises to every challenge with an ease that makes others jealous. Victor is _not_ panicking.

 

               Victor is definitely panicking.

 

               “I have nothing to wear!” Victor wails as he throws himself down on his bed.

 

               This isn’t strictly true. Victor has three suitcases worth of clothing to choose from. None of them feels right, however. None of them feel like the perfect option for his first official date with Yuri.

 

               “What’s wrong with what you have on now?” Yurio is sitting cross-legged on Otabeck’s bed watching Victor’s meltdown with a mixture of glee and irritation. Otabeck is seated next to him, headphones on and completely engrossed in something on his computer. As this seems to be the Kazak’s default state, neither Victor nor Yurio pay him any mind.

 

               “Nothing. Everything. Something? I don’t know!” Victor rolls over onto his back and lifts his head up enough so that he can see down his body. He’s wearing a purple button up and black jeans. Yurio’s right. There is nothing wrong with it at all. There is nothing wrong with it, but it still doesn’t seem _right_. “I want to make a good impression.”

 

               “I think that ship has sailed. If your winning personality hasn’t run him off yet, your clothing isn’t going to do it now.” Yurio has a point. His statement helps lift Victor’s mood in any case even if that might not have been its original intention. “Chris is supposed to be here in like five minutes. Just fucking pick something.”

 

               “Chris is here right now, my dears! And he brought your salvation!” Yurio had left the door slightly ajar when he’d come in earlier and Chris sauntered into the room, pausing briefly to throw a shirt at Victor before plopping down into one of the desk chairs. “Put that on, Victor. No questions. No staring in the mirror until you convince yourself you look ugly. Just put it on and let’s go.”

 

               “You know me so well.” Victor grumbles, but does as he’s told. The new shirt is a sky blue button up with short sleeves and a tighter fit than Victor would typically buy. He doesn’t have to look in a mirror to know it is the perfect color to bring out the deeper hues in his eyes. Chris always did know what to do. “Thank you.”

 

               “Don’t mention it. Yurio texted me ages ago about your mental breakdown. I would have gotten here sooner, but the bar called and wanted to go over some last-minute arrangements with me.” Chris jumps to his feet and reaches out to adjust Victor’s collar. “There. You look great. Yuri’s going to throw himself at your feet as soon as he sees you in this. Guaranteed.”

 

               “I sure hope not. One of you being disgusting at a time is enough for me.” Yurio launches to his feet, stuffing his phone in his pocket and stalking to the door.

 

               Otabeck tugs the headphones off his ears, letting them hang around his neck as he disconnects them from his laptop and stuffs the computer in a bag, slinging it over his shoulder as he follows his friend’s example. Victor and Chris are the last to leave, and they paused long enough for Victor to lock the door behind them.

 

               “ _Do you really think Yuri’s going to like it?”_ Victor was usually much more confident when going on dates. It was a confidence born of the knowledge that he was exactly what the other person was looking for. Being exactly what people wanted him to be had always been his specialty. Being whatever Yuri wanted him to be was a lot harder. Mostly because all Yuri wanted him to be was himself.

 

               Victor still wasn’t entirely sure what that meant, but for Yuri he was willing to try.

 

               “ _Yuri will like it just fine._ ” Chris assures him as they make their way down to the common area where they were supposed to meet up with the rest of their classmates that had expressed interest in going to Chris’ party. “ _You’re lucky. Phichit told me that Yuri is one of those guys that cares more about the person in the clothes rather than the clothes themselves. You’ve been charming him well enough up to this point. Keep doing what you’re doing._ ”

 

               “ _That’s just it, Chris. I don’t know what I’m doing._” Victor admits. “ _I have absolutely no idea how I’ve managed to get even this far._ ”

 

               “ _Well, whatever it is, it’s working._ ” Victor knows Chris is just trying to be supportive. It helps some, but there is still the clench of nerves working their way through the pit of his stomach. “ _From what I’ve heard, Yuri’s in the same boat as you. Floating along, not sure how what he’s doing is working, but running with it as it happens. Just… Do that._ ”

 

               “English! Speak fucking English!” Yurio’s yell brings them back to the present and Victor realizes they have made it all the way to the common area while he had been busy with his own thoughts.

 

               “Sorry, sorry. Sometimes I really don’t realize we’re doing it.” Chris apologizes and Yurio scoffs, but lets it go for now as they settle in to wait for the rest of the group.

 

               It doesn’t take long for people to start trickling in.

 

               First comes Leo and Guang Hong. They hover for a moment, but eventually must decide Victor and Chris’ conversation about their upcoming Cultural Studies test is a better option than joining where Yurio and Otabeck are huddled over Otabeck’s computer, connected by the twin cords of headphones and conversing quietly in Russian.

 

               The Italian twins, Victor vaguely recalls their names to be Sara and Michele, are next, the Czech student, Emil, following close on their heels. All three wish Chris ‘happy birthday’ and then meander over to a nearby table to wait.

 

               Seung-Gil is the next to arrive, taking up a spot next to Guang Hong and still wrapped in his usual stoic silence.

 

               Victor is starting to get impatient by the time JJ and another girl, who introduces herself as Isabella, turn up. It’s getting closer and closer to the time the cabs Seung-Gil arranged for their transportation are to arrive. While Victor does like his friends and acquaintances well enough, none of them are who he is looking forward to seeing this evening.

 

               Chris elbows him in the side as he starts to jiggle his left leg. Victor stops. Bites his lips. Shifts his weight from side to side. Starts jiggling his right leg instead.

 

               Before Chris can get annoyed enough to elbow him again, Phichit and Yuri show up at last.

 

               Victor feels as though a rug has been pulled out from under his feet. Everything spins and goes blurry and then rights itself again. He knows he is staring. Knows his jaw has gone slack and that Yurio is probably about to kick him or something equally unpleasant if he can’t pull himself together quickly.

 

               He knows, but he can’t stop himself from staring.

 

               Yuri looks _stunning_.

 

               Victor doesn’t know where to look first. Yuri has chosen blank pants for this evening as well, but these pants are significantly tighter than Victor’s own. He actually has a sneaking suspicion they might belong to Phichit as the Thai man is marginally smaller than Yuri. His shirt is blue, Victor thinks, but such a dark blue that it almost looks black until Yuri takes a step forward and the lighting changes. The shirt fits him well, accentuating his waist and chest and shoulders in a way the makes Victor worry he might be drooling on himself again.

 

               Yuri’s hair is slicked back, no longing falling into his eyes. Victor’s heart stutters to a stop as he notices, belatedly, that Yuri is not wearing his glasses tonight. With his hair out of his face and the large lenses no longer blocking the way, Victor has an unobstructed view of Yuri’s brown eyes. Beautiful and bright and warm. They are eyes Victor could drown himself in if given half the chance.

 

               Any words he could think to say get caught in his throat and end up coming out as an embarrassing squeaking noise.

 

               Suddenly his leg feels like it’s on fire as Yurio kicks him in the shin hard enough that Victor tumbles off the couch and onto the floor.

 

               As he grabs his shin in a desperate attempt to ease the sharp pain, Victor can’t help but wonder how he’s supposed to make it through tonight with Yuri looking like that.

 

               Forget tonight. How is he supposed to make it through the rest of his life knowing Yuri _can_ look like that?

 

               How many different ways is Yuri going to find to make him fall in love all over again?

 

               Victor can’t wait to find out.

 

~

 

               They end up squeezed between Phichit and Chris in the backseat of one of the cabs. Yuri is practically in Victor’s lap, jostled even closer with every bump and turn in the road. Yuri is quiet, but he doesn’t pull away. Doesn’t protest when Victor wraps an arm around his waist to help steady him as the cab lurches around another sharp turn. Rests his forehead on Victor shoulder to hide his blush when Victor places his hand over Yuri’s own.

 

               They arrive at the club Seung-Gil had found far too soon.

 

               As they all tumble out of the cab, Victor has to let go of Yuri’s hand. Before he can reach out to take it back, Yuri acts first, sliding his hand back into Victor’s almost as though that was where it truly belonged.

 

               Victor has to push back the urge to grab Yuri and wrap him in his arms. Instead, he settles for squeezing Yuri’s hand in recognition. Even though it is dark now, in the soft light from the streetlamps, he sees the tips of Yuri’s ears go red and he can’t stop a smile from spreading across his lips.

 

               The birthday boy leads the way, with Seung-Gil at his side to act as a translator as their group approaches the bouncers at the head of the line. Since they have reserved a VIP area for the event, they are waved in immediately, following a beautiful woman in a skintight purple dress and heels so high Victor wonders how she manages to keep her balance, through the crowded space and into an area towards the back which has been roped off to keep the other club-goers out.

 

               There is a small footlocker nestled between two of the plush, leather couches and the girls quickly stow their purses and give Michele the key to hold onto as he has been loudly proclaiming all evening that he will not be partaking in alcohol tonight as someone needs to be sober enough to protect the girls, his sister in particular.

 

               Everyone seems happy to be there, even Yurio, although he did seem to be a bit put out once he realized he was a few weeks shy of the legal drinking age here. Before the younger Russian can explode, Chris leans over and whispers something in his ear and Yurio smirks before allowing his attitude to do a complete one-eighty. If Victor knows anything about Chris, and he likes to think that he does, Yurio is going to be on the receiving end of a few sodas that are a little more bourbon than cola if Chris has anything to do with it.

 

               Seung-Gil is discussing something with the woman who is to be their attendant for the evening. After a quick conversation that includes a lot of bowing and hand gestures, the woman disappears and then reappears with a menu that is in English and has helpful pictures of different alcoholic beverages on it.

 

               “She wants me to let you know her name is Min-Ji and she will be serving us tonight.” Seung-Gil’s voice is raised to be heard over the music. It’s not quite as loud back here, if you were close enough to your conversational partner you would be able to speak in semi-normal tones Victor thinks, but the bass is still enough to cause the Korean to have to almost yell to make sure the entire group can hear him. “She apologizes for her lack of English, but she knows enough to be able to take your drink orders. There has been one tab opened for all of us and we are welcome to order here or at the bar as we choose. All we need to do is show the bartenders our wristbands and they will know where to charge it. I have already made arrangements for payment for this evening as promised.”

 

               As he speaks, Min-Ji is moving through the group, handing out green wristbands with Korean characters embossed on them.

 

               “Thanks for arranging all this, Seung-Gil.” Chris clapped the Korean on the back. “I owe you one.”

 

               Seung-Gil nods. “No need to reciprocate. It’s customary to do things for those you are close to for their birthdays. Besides, the others chipped in as well. I just was the one fortunate enough to speak the correct language to make the arrangements. Yuri actually did a lot of the planning. I did the translating.”

 

               Victor quirks an eyebrow and looks at the Japanese man beside him. Yuri flushes and waves his hand in front of his face.

 

               “It was nothing. I’ve absorbed enough party planning experience just from being in close contact with Phichit for so long. If anything you should thank him for being an insufferable roommate.” Yuri really needed to start taking credit where credit was due for his accomplishments in Victor’s humble opinion. Once he was a bit more secure in his relationship status with the other boy, he would definitely need to work on that. Although he was pleasantly surprised to learn about Yuri’s latent party planning skills.

 

               Every time he thought he had Yuri figured out, he discovered some new tidbit that cast him in yet another light. Victor was firmly convinced that he would never get tired of learning new things about Yuri no matter how long he lived.

 

               Min-Ji had finished passing out the wristbands by now and was circling back through the group with a pad of paper taking down their orders for the first round. Victor ordered a vodka tonic and Yuri ordered something that sounded Korean.

 

               “What did you order?” Victor asked as soon as Min-ji had written down their orders and moved on to where Phichit, Leo, and Guang Hong had already loudly proclaimed one of the couches as their official ‘Selfie Spot’ and were busy proving their claim by taking what Victor was sure was a ludicrous amount of selfies.

 

               “Cheongju.” Yuri leant impossibly closer, practically leaning on Victor’s shoulder now and placed extra emphasis on the syllables in the foreign word for Victor’s benefit. Not that it mattered much. Victor had no idea what that was.

 

               “And that is?”

 

               “Korea’s version of clear liquor. It’s a rice wine that’s similar enough to sake.” Yuri explains patiently and Victor hangs onto every word. “I’ve developed a taste for it over the past few years. My father met some Korean businessmen at a conference in Sapporo about three years ago. They hit it off and come around to Hasetsu whenever they can to meet up. Since we don’t always know when they are going to show up, we keep some Cheongju stocked so it’ll be on hand when they do. You can try some of mine when it gets here if you want.”

 

               “Wow…” Victor squeezes Yuri’s hand again. Yuri tilts his head and shoots a puzzled look at Victor, who is quick to elaborate. “I mean, I just didn’t think you would be so knowledgeable about Korean alcohol. I would love to try some, by the way. If you like it, I’m sure I will as well.”

 

               Victor can see Yuri flush even in the dim lights of the club, and the other man regrettably moves back out of Victor’s personal space. He does not drop Victor’s hand, though, of which the Russian is infinitely grateful for.

 

               The whole group spends the first hour sequestered in their VIP area, laughing and talking and offering celebratory toasts to Chris’ good health. Yuri had eventually let go of Victor’s hand. Victor is disappointed, but he understands. It is warm in here, on the edge of stifling, and Victor had been worried that his palms were about to begin sweating from the contact. Probably for the best for Yuri to pull back now before it becomes gross and ruins any handholding for them in the future.

 

               Even though an hour isn’t a terribly long time in the grand scheme of things, about half of the group is more than well on their way to intense inebriation by this point.

 

               Michele, still stone cold sober as he promised he would be, is trapped between Sara and Emil, the meat in their enthusiastic hug sandwich. The expression on his face wavers between irritation, acceptance, and blind rage as he is pushed and pulled in either direction while Sara and Emil babble in two completely different languages over his head.

 

               Phichit has somehow roped Seung-Gil into his ‘Selfie Spot’. There is a flush splashed across the typically reserved Korean’s face at this point and there is a slight smile tugging on the corners of his lips as Phichit slings an arm around his neck and leans back to try and find the perfect angle. Leo and Guang Hong are observing and shouting their own suggestions for different poses, giggling all the while.

 

               Chris is more subdued than Victor had thought he would be as he lets a swaying Yurio lean off him while having an intense conversation with JJ and Isabella. Every so often the blonde Russian would interject something into the conversation, sometimes in English, sometimes in Russian, and sometimes in some language Victor can’t quite understand. He’s pretty sure it’s the shared language of being drunk off your face, but as he is only slightly buzzed at this point, he isn’t quite up to translating Yurio’s drunken slur into anything recognizable.

 

               Otabeck, somehow, is nowhere to be found.

 

               As for Yuri and himself, well, they had maintained a much more reserved pace than their friends. Victor, for the sole purpose of wanting to remember every second of this date. Yuri… Well, Yuri hadn’t exactly said why he was holding back.

 

               Before Victor could think to ask, the song changes and Phichit throws his hands in the air and squeals.

 

               “I _love_ this song! Otabeck really knows what he’d doing!”

 

               Otabeck?

 

               Victor finally bothers to take a more detailed look around the club. Sure enough, Otabeck is the one behind the turntables on a raised stage at the front of the dance floor. Apparently Yuri isn’t the only one that has surprises up his sleeves.

 

               Phichit is pushing and shoving and dragging everyone within arm’s reach to go out onto the dance floor with him at this point. For the most part, everyone is going willingly enough, with the exception of Michele, but since he’s still stuck between his sister and friend it looks as though he’s not going to have a say in the matter.

 

               “Do you want to dance?” Victor asks Yuri in what he hopes is his best seductive voice. The other man shrugs.

 

               “If we don’t go now, Phichit is going to come back and make us anyway.” Yuri gets to his feet, turning and offering Victor a hand. “Trust me, it’s much easier to just go along with him to a certain degree when he’s drunk.”

 

               Victor was hoping for Yuri’s response to be more along the lines of the other man wanting to dance with him, but he accepts this reason easily enough. Either way he’s going to end up with Yuri in his arms and that is the place he is desperate for Yuri to be after all.

 

               Their group makes their way to the crowded dance floor, some stumbling more than others. Why this place would be so busy on a Tuesday night is beyond Victor, but the press of strange bodies around them is enough to keep Yuri close. Practically glued to his side.

 

               They start to dance.

 

               It’s awkward. Painfully awkward.

 

               Yuri is distracted, not really feeling the music and trying to stay closer to the center of their group of friends. Victor tried to take his mind off it. Squeezes Yuri’s hand, reaches out to gently push back where some of Yuri’s hair is starting to fall down against the gel’s hold. He tries to start a conversation in the hopes that it will take Yuri’s mind off his anxiety, but it’s much louder here as they are much closer to the speakers and they have to shout to be heard.

 

               Victor remembers their conversation a few days ago. Remembers that Yuri does not feel his best in moments like these. He glances over at where Chris and Phichit are laughing and dancing together, arms thrown over their heads and bodies moving to the beat. Well, Phichit isn’t a viable option, then.

 

               “Let’s go to the bar. It looks quieter over there.” Victor speaks directly into Yuri’s ear in an effort to avoid screaming his suggestion where any one of their friends could overhear. Having someone follow them would defeat the purpose of trying to get Yuri away from the pressure of trying to fit in with the others.

 

               Yuri jumps slightly, but he pulls back to look Victor in the eye as soon as what he’s said registers. He hesitates, then nods. Yuri looks relived, as though he were pleased that Victor was able to sense his unease and figure out a plan to help make him more comfortable.

 

               It is quieter at the bar and Victor watches Yuri order another drink. They take up a spot in the corner where they can still keep track of what their friends are doing in case Yuri decides he wants to return to the group, but still secluded enough to not draw any attention to themselves.

 

               “Thanks, Victor.” Yuri takes a deep drink from his glass, cringing as the burn of the alcohol goes down his throat. “You don’t have to babysit me if you don’t want to, though. I’ll be fine here if you want to go dance with everyone else.”

 

               “The only person in this entire club I would ever want to dance with is you.” Victor states calmly. It is the truth after all. Now that he’s met Yuri, he can’t imagine even looking at anyone else ever again. Now if only he could convince Yuri he was serious and not just a flirt.

 

               “Oh… I’m sorry.” Yuri looks upset now and Victor curses in his head. Damn it, why does he always seem to say the wrong thing where Yuri is concerned? Every time he takes a baby step forward, he ends up taking a giant leap back in the end because of his own big mouth. “If you want to dance I can…”

 

               “Yuri.” Victor places a finger over Yuri’s lips to stop him before he can even get going. “That’s not what I meant. I only want to dance with you if you want to. You don’t ever have to force yourself to do something that makes you feel uncomfortable because you think _I_ might want it. If you want to dance later, then I would love to dance with you. If you want to spend the whole night right here or back with our things, I am perfectly happy with that, too. No tricks. No hidden intentions. I’m happy and comfortable so long as _you_ are happy and comfortable.”

 

               “Victor…”

 

               Yuri is shaking his head, but he is smiling. It’s a soft smile, too. One of Victor’s favorites. Yuri shifts in his seat and lowers his gaze back to the glass in his hand, but before he does, Victor sees that sparkle in Yuri’s eyes that he loves.

 

               After a moment, Yuri looks up again, staring deep into Victor’s eyes now. He reaches out and wraps a warm hand around Victor’s wrist. Victor’s heart stutters in its usual rhythm and he finds himself utterly entranced by the man in front of him. The entire club could have fallen down around his ears right then and there and he would have been hard pressed to care or even notice.

 

               “Thank you.”

 

~

 

               An hour and a half later and Yuri was wasted.

 

               That was the only word Victor could think to describe Yuri’s current state. They had talked for about ten minutes before an equally drunk Chris and Phichit had spotted them on their way to refill their own drinks. Victor had already made the switch to water, wanting to make sure he kept his wits about him if Yuri was going to be in a mentally fragile state for the rest of the night, but Yuri apparently misplaced his earlier reservations and was now determined to match his friends drink for drink… And then some.

 

               Victor had known Yuri was proficient in ballet and a few other forms of dance.

 

               He did not know that one of those genres was pole dancing.

 

               “ **You’re drooling again**.”

 

               Victor couldn’t give any less of a fuck. He couldn’t take his eyes off where Yuri currently had a naked thigh wrapped around a silver pole. Where the pole had come from or why it was there in the first place, Victor didn’t know or care. So what if he was drooling? He probably wasn’t the only one.

 

               Yurio elbowed him in the side. Victor winced and half-heartedly threw an elbow back. He barely connected with the smaller boy’s arm and Yurio laughed.

 

               “ **First of all, whatever is happening over there is disgusting. Second of all, you don’t care that your boyfriend is dancing in his underwear with your best friend?** ” Yurio had obviously sobered up from the state he was in earlier in the evening. His Russian had returned to him with only a slight slur in any case.

 

               “ **Chris is just having some fun. Besides, _I’m_ not about to get up there with him. I’d break my neck and the view is so lovely from here.**”

 

               And what a view it was. Even the world’s tightest yoga pants would not have been enough to prepare Victor for the sight of Yuri’s ass in those boxer briefs. Victor couldn’t decide which part of Yuri’s anatomy he wanted to focus on more. His thighs, ass, abs, or the way the muscles in his biceps and shoulders tensed and rippled as he spun around or supported Chris as he tried a complex move that Victor was pretty sure defied all the laws of physics he knew.

 

               “ **If you got up there and somehow managed not to break your neck, you wouldn’t have to worry about it because I would fucking do it for you.** ” Yurio growls and Victor frowns as both Yuri and Chris dismount the pole and begin trying to sort out their clothing enough to get at least half-dressed. “ **Thank god. They seem to be done.** ”

 

               “ **You’re just bitter because Yuri beat you in your dance off.** ”

 

               That was the wrong thing to say if Yurio stomping on his left foot was any indication. Ah well, that was the price he had to pay for telling the truth. Victor also hadn’t realized either Yuri or Yurio knew how to break dance either, but he did know his life was all the more enriched for knowing it now.

 

               Victor was about to offer up another sarcastic response that would have only succeeded in earning him more bruises, but he was stopped by the arrival of Yuri, sweaty and back in his clothes now, though they were wrinkled beyond repair by now.

 

               “Victor!” Yuri slurred his name, tongue rolling over the last ‘r’ in a way that sent shivers up Victor’s spine and caused heat to settle in the pit of his stomach. “Victor! Come dance with me?”

 

               As if the answer to that question would have ever been anything other than ‘yes’.

 

               Yuri pulled him out onto the dance floor. Before Victor could get his bearings, they were off. Yuri whirling and twisting in Victor’s arms. His cheeks were flushed, this time from the alcohol and exertion rather than any embarrassment, and his sweaty hair was falling across his forehead and again. There was a dark looks in those brilliant brown eyes that screamed ‘seduction’ and Victor found himself lost in that look, in the way Yuri’s body bushed against his, in the way Yuri would tilt his head back and laugh as though he had no inhibitions for the first time in his life.

 

               Otabeck was a good DJ. Victor had to admit. Victor had been expecting to spend the whole evening listening to Korean pop, but Otabeck was spinning a good mix of everything. American, Korean, music in other languages Victor couldn’t quite place, and even a Russian song or two. Now, however, he was playing a remix of something Latin-based. Fierce and fiery and Spanish. Victor grinned as he pulled Yuri flush to his chest before spinning the other man out again so their only point of contact was their joined hands.

 

               This time when Yuri spun back into his arms, something shifted and Yuri took the lead, eyes flashing and an uncharacteristic smirk on his lips that sent a flash of heat from the base of Victor’s skull and all the way down his spine. Luckily his body knew how to continue the dance on its own as he was pretty sure his brain was completely fried for the rest of the night. For the rest of his life probably.

 

               Then Yuri dipped him.

 

               Yuri’s hand was cupping Victor’s jaw, fingers splayed across his ear and the nape of his neck. Victor had reached up and placed a hand on Yuri’s back for balance while letting his other arm hang free and loose behind him. Victor kicked his right leg up in the air and Yuri reached behind him to grab it and help support Victor even more.

 

               Victor leant his head back into Yuri’s firm grasp and closed his eyes. He could feel how close their faces were to each other, noses almost touching, Yuri’s breath ghosting across Victor’s lips. He didn’t have to look to know that all it would take would be for him to raise his head just a few centimeters for their lips to touch at last…

 

               Before he could gather the presence of mind to close the gap, Yuri had pulled him back up and they were off again.

 

               The music was coming to it final crescendo now as Yuri and Victor continued to switch off. Sometimes Victor would lead, and sometimes it would be Yuri. Victor was getting dizzy, but he didn’t want to stop. He never wanted to stop ever again.

 

               The song ended and the next song began to play. This was one softer and slower, with an underlying hint of bass that made Victor’s entire body pulse in time.

 

               Yuri pressed in closer so they were chest to chest. As Victor rested his hands on Yuri’s waist, the other man twined his arms around Victor’s neck. They swayed silently to the beat for a few heartbeats, Yuri resting his cheek on Victor’s shoulder.

 

               “Victor?” Victor glance down to see that Yuri was looking up at his through those impossibly dark and thick lashes.

 

               “Yes, Yuri?”

 

               “I don’t ever want this year to end.” Yuri sounded so sad and Victor’s heart tugged in his chest. He tightened his grip on Yuri’s waist and rested his forehead against Yuri’s own.

 

               “Me either.” Victor kept his voice pitched low, trying to maintain the private world they had created between each other. “I wish this year would last forever.”

 

               “You could come visit me. Next year. In Hasetsu.” Yuri looked so excited by that thought, bouncing in Victor’s arms. “Yes! Do that. Victor, come stay with me next year!”

 

               Victor’s brain froze.

 

               He could see it. Every single second of it. Himself in Hasetsu. Running along the beach in the mornings, helping out in the inn during the day, skating in the afternoons, and soaking in the hot springs in the evening. Spending every minute of his day with Yuri either by his side or not too far away. Getting to go to bed each night and waking up each morning with Yuri at his side, in his bed, in his _life._

 

               He had never wanted anything more.

 

               Victor was about to say it, too. About to say it out loud and make it real. Hell, Victor was one poorly controlled impulse away from dropping down onto one knee right then and there and begging Yuri to let him stay by his side for the rest of his life.

 

               Then Chris and Phichit interrupted.

 

               “Best friends!” Chris looped his arms around the pair, Phichit screeching and copying the gesture from his side until the four of them were involved in an impromptu group hug. “Best friends! The world is spinning, I’m having the time of my life, and the night is still young!”

 

               “The night is not still young.” Phichit clucked his tongue, but didn’t loosen his hold on Victor’s shoulder. “The night is late, but we shouldn’t let that stop us! We should never let anything stop us! Together we are all unstoppable!”

 

               Oh… So Phichit and Chris were having a shared ‘I love everyone in this bar’ moment. Victor was sure he would have been amused if they had chosen to do this at literally any other time. Instead, he was vaguely irritated. Something had been about to happen with Yuri and now Victor wasn’t sure when or if he was going to be able to get that moment back.

 

               “Best friends!” Yuri was giggling now. “We _are_ best friends. Phichit, we’ve been best friends like… Like _forever_.”

 

               “Forever!” Phichit echoes as he throws his head back and laughs. “Forever and ever and ever and… Oh… I think I need to throw up now.”

 

               Phichit had not been wrong. Victor and Yuri ended up in the bathroom while the Thai man emptied everything in his stomach while Yuri cooed to him and rubbed his back. Chris was slumped on the floor off to the side, chirping away in French about how this was the best birthday he’d ever had and Victor, isn’t Yuri just the best with the way he takes care of his friends and everything?

 

               “ _Your boyfriend is amazing. So nice. He can do anything. Such a good friend._ ” Chris had his head resting against the cool tile of the bathroom’s walls. Victor cringed a bit at the sight. Who knew how nasty those walls really were? “ _And such a good dancer! You are so lucky. Lucky, lucky Victor._ ”

 

               “ _Oh!_ ” Chris’ face lit up and he lunged forward and grabbed Victor’s forearm. “ _Victor! Are you going to get lucky tonight?_”

 

               Victor felt the blood drain from his face and he looked frantically behind him expecting to see Yuri staring at them in horror. But Yuri was still concerned with holding his friend’s bangs off his face as he continued to dry heave into the toilet bowl.

 

               Thank god Chris had been speaking French.

 

               “ _I doubt it, but I’ll let you know in the morning. If you even remember this conversation that is._ ” Victor reached out a hand and hauled his friend to his feet. “ _Come on. It’s getting late and I have the sneaking suspicion that if we don’t gather everyone together and leave soon, Phichit isn’t going to be the only one of our friends hovering over these unsanitary toilets._ ”

 

               It took quite a bit of wrangling to get everyone on the same page and corralled out of the club without losing anyone or anything. As it was, they had apparently lost one of JJ’s shoes, presumably forever as the Canadian didn’t seem to care much about tracking it down. Otabeck and Michele were the most helpful, as Michele had held up to his promise of not drinking and Otabeck had been busy performing the whole night and, as such, was fairly sober as well.

 

               The party spirit was still going strong by the time they got back to the dorms and no one seemed ready to part ways and go to bed. They had all ended up crashing together in the common area. To everyone’s surprise, Guang Hong had disappeared back to his dorm room, returning with a full bottle of vodka that he began passing around for people to take shots from.

 

               It was four am before everyone was either passed out or just plain asleep.

 

               Victor was the last to fall asleep as he had been busy making sure no one got rowdy enough to have campus police called on them. Logically, he knew he should go back to his dorm. Sleep in his bed instead of on the floor which would no doubt cause his back to ache in the morning, but Yuri had fallen asleep using his chest as a pillow and he was loathe to wake him, even if it would have been to tuck them both into an actual bed.

 

               Victor fell asleep on the hard floor listening to Yuri’s fluttering breaths and running his fingers through his soft, black hair.

 

               As he drifted off into unconsciousness, he couldn’t help but think that this had been the best night of his entire life so far.

 

~

 

               Yuri woke up in the morning with a splitting headache and a mouth that felt like he had been licking cotton balls all night. He also needed to pee. Badly.

 

               He groaned low in his throat as he tried to roll away from the shaft of light that was shining directly in his eyes. Obviously his drunk self hadn’t thought to close the curtains before going to bed the night before. Drunk Yuri was terrible at foresight.

 

               Before Yuri could get far, his aching brain kicked into motion to bring his attention to two facts that had previously escaped him with his first mental once over of his body.

 

               Number one: He was not in his bed at all. He was on the floor. Well, he was half on the floor, half sprawled out on top of someone else. Someone who had taken Yuri’s attempt to roll away as a sign they needed to increase the pressure of the arm flung around his waist in order to prevent Yuri from being able to get away completely.

 

               Number two: The person he was using as a temporary mattress was none other than Victor.

 

               Oh, _fuck_.

 

               Yuri froze, eyes opening now as he took stock of the situation he was currently in.

 

               All the memories of the night before came flooding back.

 

               Yuri getting nervous when Phichit had moved the party to the dance floor. Feeling as though all eyes were on him even though he logically knew that wasn’t the case. Panicking a bit as he tried to dance with Victor and knowing that he was so stiff it was throwing everything off rhythm. How Victor had noticed and suggested they go to the bar where they could have more privacy.

 

               Victor who had wanted to dance with him, but hadn’t pushed it as soon as he realized how uncomfortable Yuri had been.

 

               When Phichit and Chris had shown up for another round of drinks, Yuri had gone along with it. It wasn’t fair to make Victor sit in the corner with him all night, no matter how many times the other man insisted he didn’t care. Yuri never had been one to drink, not after he realized exactly what effect alcohol had on him, but it had seemed like a good idea at the time. Yuri needed to relax. Alcohol helped his relax. Simple math.

 

               Then Yurio had shown up, also on the wrong side of wasted. The blonde teenager had been bragging about something or another and Yuri’s stupid, stupid brain had interpreted Yurio’s arrogance as a challenge. Well, at least he could console himself with the fact that he had overwhelmingly won the dance battle that followed once the shame of everything had passed.

 

               Then he’d been dancing with Chris and there was a pole and Yuri had used it, stripping off his clothes as he went. Locking eyes with Victor from across the crowd and letting that tiny, animal part of his brain take over.

 

               Oh, god. He had danced on a pole in his underwear while giving Victor ‘fuck me’ eyes from across the room. _Why_ had no one stopped him?

 

               Victor, to his credit, hadn’t seemed to let it phase him. They had danced together after that, once Yuri had redressed himself. That had been nice, if a little dizzying. Of course, Victor had probably been humoring him at that point, not wanting to upset Yuri when he was drunk and prone to being emotional. He’d even asked Victor if he would come back to Japan to live with him next year. What the hell had he been thinking?

 

               Whatever he had been thinking the night before, it didn’t matter now. Now he needed to get out from under Victor’s restraining arm and get away before Victor could wake up and find that Yuri really had been pathetic enough to curl up in his arms after the vodka had made his head go fuzzy. Victor was a nice guy. Too nice to have left Yuri hanging and Yuri definitely appreciated that, but it didn’t mean he should be here when Victor woke up. The polite thing to do would be to give Victor some time to compose himself before he had the inevitable conversation about how they would be great friends, but that Yuri was a little too much of a hot mess to be able to be anything more.

 

               Ugh… Drunk Yuri was the worst.

 

               It took about five minutes to wiggle away from Victor’s grasp. Even in his sleep, the other man was clingy and Yuri was desperate not to wake him, which made him take his time even though every cell in his body was screaming at him to flee.

 

               Once he was on his feet, he looked around the room, trying to ignore the raw fear clawing at his throat. He was definitely going to have a panic attack, but he did not want to have it alone. He had learned the hard way that it took him far longer to recover when he didn’t have someone to help snap him out of it. He’d held Phichit’s hair back when he’d been vomiting the night before. Phichit owed him.

 

               Apparently no one had made it to their rooms. Everyone was sprawled out on couches and floors and, for some reason, Leo was flat on his back on the top of a table. This made finding Phichit more difficult than it needed to be, but eventually Yuri located the familiar head of dark hair curled up on a couch cushion in front of the vending machine, snack wrappers littered around him and a half-eaten chocolate bar melting in his clenched fist.

 

               “Phichit.” Yuri was too scared to do anything other than whisper. He didn’t know what would happen if anyone else woke up, but he knew in his current state it wouldn’t be good. He reached out and shook his friend hard. “Phichit!”

 

               Phichit snorted and jolted upright, mouth hanging open and eyes clouded with sleep and confusion for a moment before he groaned and buried his face in his knees, arms wrapping around his abdomen and chocolate smearing all over his shirt.

 

               “Oh… Oh, I think I’m dying.” Phichit’s voice was hoarse and Yuri felt a pang of sympathy roll through him. If it weren’t for his impending panic attack, he knew he would be in much the same state right now.

 

               “[Phichit. Please.]” Yuri whispered again.

 

               It worked. Phichit turned and looked at Yuri with his dark grey eyes still hazy and unfocused. As soon as he saw who was hovering over him he froze, gaze raking over Yuri’s face and Yuri could pinpoint the exact moment when he realized exactly what was happening.

 

               “[Oh, Yuri… I was hoping you’d be fine, but I was afraid this was going to happen.]”

 

               Phichit lurched to his feet, grabbing Yuri by the arm and letting them support each other as they staggered upstairs to Phichit’s dorm. Once they arrived Phichit forced Yuri into the bathroom and they both sank down onto the cold floor, Phichit leaning against the wall and Yuri sitting across from him with his back supported by the tub. Their knees were pressed together and Yuri allowed his mind to narrow down to that one feeling in the hope it would quiet some of the thoughts flying through his brain.

 

               It did help. A little.

 

               Not nearly enough.

 

               “I can’t believe I did those things.” Yuri was fighting back tears. He knew it was a losing battle. Knew he would feel better as soon as he cried and let this out of his system, but he always instinctually fought back those initial tears anyway. “He’s going to hate me now.”

 

               “He’s not going to hate you.” Phichit nudged Yuri with a knee in an attempt to keep him grounded. Yuri appreciated the gesture. Phichit had really gotten good at knowing what to do to help him ride through these things by now. “You know it’s just the anxiety talking. The last thing Victor feels for you right now is hatred. Trust me.”

 

               “How could he still want to be with me after everything I did?” Yuri could hear the waver in his tone even through the scratchiness in his throat. “I embarrassed him in front of everyone. I don’t blame him for wanting to stop pursuing me. I’m not exactly prime dating material after all.”

 

               “Number one: You didn’t do anything more or less embarrassing than any of the rest of us did. If you recall, you were not alone up there on that pole. Chris was right there with you having the time of his fucking life. Number two: I know that you don’t believe this, but you are more than just prime dating material. Anyone would be damn lucky to catch your attention.” Phichit leant forward, catching Yuri’s gaze and forcing him to focus on his friend’s face instead of his knees.

 

               “Number three: You don’t _know_ Victor wants to stop pursing you. I’ll bet he’s still lying down there asleep and dreaming about how amazing you are.”

 

               Yuri took a moment to really look at his friend while his words sank in, working their way through the cracks in Yuri’s mental wall.

 

               Phichit looked terrible. There were bags under his eyes and a sallow tint to his tanned complexion. His hair was a mess and there was a glob of something that looked like chocolate in his hair. He hadn’t even washed his hands. But Phichit was real. He was here and he was Yuri’s friend. He wouldn’t lie. Wouldn’t say what he thought Yuri wanted to hear to make him feel better. Phichit knew better than that.

 

               “I can’t, Phichit. I just can’t.”

 

               “I know you can’t right now, Yuri. Trust me, I know.” Phichit ran a hand through his hair, getting more chocolate in the strands. “You might not be able to see it today, or tomorrow, or even next week maybe, but Victor is still going to be there. He’s still going to want you. I have never seen someone more devoted to a person they barely know more in my entire life. Please don’t let this force you to push him away. Neither of you want that, not really.”

 

               Yuri didn’t want to push Victor away, but he had to. He had to for Victor’s own good. No one deserved to be tied to someone like him. No one deserved to have to sit on a bathroom floor at eight in the morning while still hungover from the night before while Yuri had a mental breakdown. Phichit didn’t deserve it and Victor definitely didn’t either.

 

               The dams broke and Yuri began to sob.

 

               He had been so stupid. So completely and utterly naïve. How had he ever thought he could do this? Travel the world? Make new friends? Attract someone as bright and perfect as Victor and somehow make him stay? Ask Victor to come home with him and think the answer could ever possibly be ‘yes’?

 

               Yuri’s chest was burning.

 

               He couldn’t breathe.

 

               He vaguely registered Phichit moving so that he was sitting next to him and wrapping Yuri in his arms, singing something softly in Thai, knowing Yuri couldn’t understand, but would appreciate the gesture. He didn’t deserve Phichit either, but Phichit was stubborn and refused to let him go, so he pushed the guilt aside and cried into his friend’s shoulder.

 

               He couldn’t do this. Victor deserved better. Victor deserved someone who wasn’t broken. Even though it felt like he was cutting out his own heart and crushing it, Yuri had to let Victor go.

 

               It was for the best.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> I'm so sorry for the Yuri breakdown last chapter! Don't worry, I won't leave you hanging for too long.
> 
> I also have a Tumblr! I'm not on it super often, and basically just reblog Yuri on Ice stuffs, but sometimes I'll post a drabble or two there. ^_^  
> https://www.tumblr.com/blog/gallopingmonroe-blog

March – China

 

               Victor still couldn’t understand what had happened.

 

               He had thought things were going so well. Chris’ party had been the best night of his life and then when he’d gotten up in the morning, Yuri was gone. It was like he’d fallen off the face of the Earth, which was a major accomplishment since they shared a cultural studies class, a friend group, and were supposed to be helping Yurio work through his dance programs together.

 

               A week and a half went by and Victor saw only the most fleeting glances of Yuri Katsuki.

 

               Victor heard from Chris that he still showed up for study group, although he had his timing down so that he was never around when Victor was, always waiting for the Russian to be pulled away for something or another before making an appearance.

 

               Yurio had confessed that Yuri had begged him to not let Victor come to their practice sessions any longer. Yurio had at first refused, but then had decided to have a session with Victor one day and Yuri the next, though he never could be convinced to give up the exact time his session with Yuri was so Victor wasn’t able to crash it.

 

               He had Phichit taping their cultural studies lectures and had apparently worked something out with the professor so that he attendance wasn’t negatively impacted by his physical absence from the class.

 

               Whenever Victor showed up for any planned outings with their friends, Yuri was never there. Whenever Victor decided to stay behind in the hopes of catching Yuri around the dorms, it turned out Yuri had gone.

 

               Victor wasn’t always the quickest on the uptake, but even he knew when he was being avoided.

 

               He just couldn’t figure out _why_.

 

               “ _Did I do something wrong? Did I come on too strong? Not strong enough? The perfect amount of strength? No, that doesn’t make sense. If I used the perfect approach, then why is he avoiding me? Did I offend him?_ ” Victor was lying on a row of benches in at the airport while they waited for their boarding call for the plane that would take them to Beijing, staring at the ceiling while Chris looked on sympathetically. “ _I don’t think I offended him. He didn’t seem offended. Maybe he was too polite to show me that I offended him? Could that be it? I wish he would tell me whatever it was so I can apologize and we can go back to being friends, at least._ ”

 

               “ _I get the feeling from Phichit that it’s a bit more complicated than that._ ” Chris had been able to get more out of Yuri’s friend than Victor had. It still wasn’t much, but it was more to go on that just nothing. “ _He told you he has anxiety, right?_ ”

 

               “ _He mentioned something about not being good in large crowds sometimes, but he seemed fine at your party. A little stiff at first, but he worked out it._” He sat up and looked curiously at his friend. Victor felt as though he was missing something. There was some part of the puzzle that was Yuri Katsuki he was not seeing, something that was being kept hidden from him.

 

               He went over every interaction he’d had with Yuri in the month before the party. No matter how small or insignificant the interaction seemed on the surface. He remembered the day in Hasetsu when they had gone skating. How Yuri had insisted he wasn’t that great at it, that Victor was definitely better. Then how he’d looked on the ice, all fluid movements, spins and blades blurring as he danced around Victor while they laughed.

 

               Remembered thinking that whenever Yuri said something about himself to assume that he was downplaying his abilities.

 

               Not realizing until this very moment that his good points might not be the only thing Yuri would want to downplay.

 

               “ _Son of a bitch…_ ” Victor felt the blood rush out of his cheeks. “ _Oh god, I can’t believe I didn’t see it. He’s right to be mad at me. I should have known. Should have convinced him not to drink so much, or not to dance like that, or…. Something. I should have done something_. _He is so right to be mad at me. I deserve it._ ”

 

               “ _You don’t deserve it if he didn’t tell you._ ” Chris pointed out. Victor knew his friend had a point, but he wasn’t at a place where he was ready to accept the comfort offered. “ _I told you. I think it’s complicated. Yuri will come around. He isn’t going to be able to avoid you forever, and I doubt he really wants to._ ”

 

               “Why do you idiots always do this?” Victor jumped as Yurio plopped into the seat next to him with a huff. “Has no one told you it’s rude to have a conversation in another language when your friends are around?”

 

               “You talk to me in Russian all the time when the others are around.” Victor grumbled. On any other day he probably would have been quick to poke fun at Yurio referring to them as friends, but today he wasn’t in the mood. Right now all he wanted to do was find Yuri, drop to his knees, and beg forgiveness.

 

               “That’s different. Unless you like everyone hearing me calling you names. If that’s the case, then, by all means, I’ll speak English.” Yurio crossed his arms over his chest and level an impressive one-eyed glare in Victor’s direction. Even with his blonde hair pulled back into a half ponytail, he had left his bangs to fall over his right eye as usual.

 

               “Happy birthday, by the way.” Chris spoke up from his spot and Yurio grumbled something that could either have been ‘thank you’ or ‘fuck off’. Sometimes it was hard to tell. “Since we’re traveling for most of the day today, are you planning on setting something up once we get settled in Beijing?”

 

               “Nope. I think I’ve had enough wild parties for the time being, thank you.” Yurio grunted and shuffled down lower in his seat. Everyone had spent the vast majority of the day after Chris’ party hovering over their toilets or writhing in agony in various locations all over the dorm. Yurio in particular had suffered a nasty hangover, frozen underneath a table in the common area curled around a wastebasket with Otabeck hovering around making sure he didn’t actually die. Victor didn’t blame him for not wanting to go through that again so soon.

 

               “At least let us take you to dinner. A quiet dinner. No alcohol. I’m sure Guang Hong can find somewhere decent.” Victor offered. Despite the twist of despair in his own stomach that had persisted and grown stronger with every day Yuri continued to hide from him, Victor knew Yurio deserved at least that much. For reasons that still escaped him, Victor and Yurio were friends and friends didn’t let friends sulk alone in a foreign country on their birthdays. “Come on. It’ll be fun.”

 

               “I’ve come to realize you and I have completely different definitions of the word ‘fun’ at times.” Yurio was still looking at him suspiciously, but his glare had been tempered somewhat. “Fine. Maybe tomorrow or something.”

 

               “Done.” Victor felt a bit better. This didn’t do anything to solve his Yuri problem, but it felt nice to do something good for Yurio. He had a feeling the kid didn’t exactly have a ton of friends back home.

 

               Before too long they were called to board the plane. Victor rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet as he craned his neck to look over the crowd of people lined up at the gate, but Yuri and Phichit were nowhere to be found. He was sure they would be one of the last people to board. When Yuri wanted to disappear he was scary good at it.

 

               Well, no matter how good he was, Yuri was bound to screw up sooner or later. Victor never had been a patient person and he was fast approaching the end of his rope. If Yuri didn’t want to talk to him, that was fine, but Victor was going to find a way to at least apologize no matter what.

 

               He just had to hope that Yuri was willing to listen when the time came.

 

~

 

               Victor barely held back a squeal of delight when he’d read the room assignments once they had arrived at the dorm in Beijing. He was rooming with Phichit. The only person he would want to room with more was Yuri himself, but Phichit was definitely second on the list.

 

               “Phichit!” The Thai man was already in the dorm room by the time Victor had managed to drag his luggage upstairs and Victor left everything in a haphazard pile in the middle of the hall as he launched through the open door and grabbed Phichit, pulling him into a tight hug. “Phichit, I’m so glad to see you!”

 

               “Oh… Oh, we’re hugging now. This… This is a thing we’re definitely doing? Wow.” Phichit patted Victor on the back hesitantly and Victor got the hint and released him, although he didn’t move too far out of Phichit’s personal bubble. He was almost afraid the other man would also disappear if he let him get too far away. “That was… Nice? I didn’t realize we were on hugging terms.”

 

               “Sorry. I guess I got a little overexcited.”

 

               “Victor, I’m starting to get the feeling that overexcited is your default state.” Phichit laughed nervously and rubbed a hand against the nape of his neck. “Not that it’s a bad thing, per se. Just… Unexpected sometimes.”

 

               “I can see that.” Victor took another step back as a show of good faith and Phichit relaxed enough lower his hands and rest them on his hips.

 

               They stared at each other for a long moment, each one sizing the other up.

 

               Victor never could stand silence.

 

               “Phichit. I have to ask you a serious question.”

 

               Phichit’s entire body stiffened and his expression immediately became guarded, but he didn’t run. He simply inclined his head in Victor’s direction as a silent cue for him to continue.

 

               “Is Yuri a ninja?”

 

               Another silence, Phichit is now staring at Victor as though he’s lost his mind. Maybe he has. He certainly hadn’t been operating at peak efficiency these days.

 

               Then Phichit laughs.

 

               “What the fuck, Victor?” Phichit has now collapsed on his bed, clutching his stomach as he continues to laugh so hard there are now tears in the corners of his eyes. Victor can’t help but laugh a bit in return. The entire situation is, quite frankly, ludicrous. “I’m not going to lie. That was _not_ the question I thought you were going to ask.”

 

               “Well, you most likely wouldn’t answer the question you thought I was going to ask and this felt equally important.” Victor paused long enough to return to the hall and grab his things, shutting the door behind him and flipping the lock. He remembered that first day back in Seoul and Yurio bursting into the room in the midst of a temper tantrum. This conversation was too important to be interrupted in such a way. “Seriously. There are forty of us. How has he managed to go a whole week and a half without me seeing him?”

 

               “He’s had a lot of practice.” Phichit responds, as though that explains anything. Victor must still looks utterly confused as the Thai man sighs heavily and elaborates. “When Yuri doesn’t feel well, he hides. It doesn’t matter if it’s a physical or mental hurt. He just… He does this stupid fucking thing where he decides everyone in his life is better off without him and he does everything in his power to remove himself from the equation without bothering to stop and see if the people he’s hiding from might have a different opinion.”

 

               “It’s really fucking annoying.”

 

               Victor stares at Phichit from across the room, unable to miss the frustration and anger in the other man’s voice.

 

               “What did I do to him? How can I fix it?” Victor will beg. He’s sure by the expression on Phichit’s face that he knows Victor will throw himself on the ground and beg if he has to and his expression turns soft, more open.

 

               “You didn’t _do_ anything. No one _did_ anything.” Phichit waves a hand through the air as though the gesture would help collect his thoughts into something that made more sense. “I’ve only known him for two years, but I can be very persistent. He’s told me some things…”

 

               “You don’t have to say if you don’t want to.” Victor is quick to interrupt before Phichit can reveal anything he shouldn’t. The last thing Victor wanted to do was break Yuri’s trust by overstepping his boundaries with Yuri’s best friend. “I don’t want to force you to say something he wouldn’t want anyone else to know.”

 

               “It’s common enough knowledge.” Phichit shifts around on his bed before pulling his legs up and tucking them underneath him. Victor mirrors the position on his own bed, settling in for a conversation that should have been had months ago. “Yuri told me he discussed with you why he never pursued his skating. Do you remember?”

 

               “Yes.” Victor nods. “I remember. He said he would get too anxious before competitions. Almost to the point of a panic attack.”

 

               “Yeah… About that… He doesn’t get anxious to the _point_ of a panic attack. He actually _has_ a panic attack.” Phichit bites his bottom lip and shifts his weight again.

 

               Victor just nods calmly. “I should have known. Is that what happened? After the party? He had a panic attack?”

 

               “Yes.”

 

               Another silence. This one is more companionable than icy, though. Almost as though Phichit had made up his mind about Victor and his intentions and is no longer holding back. For this, Victor is grateful.

 

               “It was my fault.”

 

               “It wasn’t your fault. It wasn’t anyone’s fault.” Phichit is quick to reassure him. “Look, if you are serious about wanting something with Yuri, you have to understand that this is just another aspect of who he is. It isn’t going to go away. No matter how comfortable he gets with you, no matter how much you trust each other or support each other, he’s going to have bad days and he’s going to shut down and panic and withdraw and it is going to hurt like hell every time.”

 

               “I understand.” Victor does understand, to an extent. He’s never seen anyone have a panic attack before, but the concept is familiar enough to him. Knowing this about Yuri doesn’t make him seem any less in Victor’s eyes. If anything, it makes Yuri seem even stronger. To have done the things Yuri has done with that following him around like a black cloud? Victor was sure he wouldn’t have been able to do it.

 

               “I need to talk to him, Phichit. I need to get him to see that I want to be there for him.” He takes a deep breath. “It sounds dumb. Insane, even. I barely know him, but I really do care. I want the chance for there to be something between us, but I can’t do it if he won’t let me in.”

 

               Phichit hesitates, the wheels turning in his head and Victor waits him out. If there was anyone in the world that could help open a crack for Victor to squeeze his way back into Yuri’s life, Phichit was the one.

 

               “Okay, okay. I’ll help.” Phichit smiles as Victor jumps to his feet and does a little victory dance. “Geeze. People are not wrong when they compare you to a puppy, are they?”

 

               “I’m starting to become rather fond of that comparison, actually.”

 

               “I’m starting to think the two of you deserve each other.” Phichit chuckles and there is no malice to his words. Victor can’t help but grin. “We’re supposed to take Yurio to dinner tomorrow night, right? Chris texted me the details. I’ll talk to Yuri in the morning and text you a location where he’ll be. You get one shot to convince him. Don’t blow it. I expect to see both of you at Yurio’s dinner.”

 

               This time when Victor hugs him, Phichit just laughs and lets it happen.

 

~

 

               “Yuri, we need to talk.”

 

               Yuri swallows heavily, a lead weight dropping down into the pit of his stomach. He should have seen this coming. Phichit had been awfully accommodating back in Korea. More so than he ever had been in the past. Typically, Phichit was adamant about drawing him out of his funk before it even stretched into the third day, but this time Phichit had let him sulk for far longer.

 

               It was about time he snapped out of it, though. If only because the rest of the trip was going to be miserable for them both if he didn’t and the last thing he wanted was to drag Phichit down with him.

 

               “Is this the part where you tell me it’s time to stop running away from my problems?” Yuri pushed some eggs around on his plate. It was earlier than he would like to be awake, but he’d wanted to have time to eat his breakfast before the rest of the class got over their jetlag and started stirring.

 

               “If you already know what I’m going to say, why don’t we cut out all the back and forth and you go ahead and agree to talk to Victor?”

 

               Yuri tapped his fingers against the table, feeling the urge to get up and run again.

 

               “You’ve had a week and half to sulk and regroup. I honestly shouldn’t have given you that long.” Phichit reaches across the table and steals one on the strawberries on Yuri’s tray. “Look, we’ve been over this so many times I’m getting dizzy just thinking about it.”

 

               “I know, I know.” Yuri stops his nervous fidgeting and rubs his temples instead. “I owe him an explanation. I owe him the chance to make a decision for himself instead of making it for him.”

 

               “You know, but are you ready to do it?” Phichit was resting his forearms on the table and leant forward to ensure he kept Yuri’s full attention. “I’m rooming with him this month. The very first thing he did when he got to the room was beg me to help me find you. He’s depressed. Maybe even more depressed than you. I know he doesn’t show it much because he has the personality of a dog in a pool full of tennis balls, but he is.”

 

               “Ouch. Going right for the guilt route?” Yuri winced and offered Phichit a weak smile. “Usually you only try to make me guilty as a last resort. What did he say to you?”

 

               “Enough for me to trust that he’s sincere and that you’re being an idiot.” Phichit shrugged. “I mean, I already knew you were being an idiot. It was nice to see how completely and totally in love with you he is, though. Chris kept saying it, but I didn’t really believe it until last night.”

 

               “He’s not in love with me.” Yuri couldn’t help but protest. “He barely knows me and I barely know him.”

 

               “Semantics. I think we both know the heart wants what it wants whether it makes logical sense or not.” Phichit raised an eyebrow and Yuri sighed, pushing his half-eaten breakfast away. His friend was right. This had gone on for long enough.

 

               He still didn’t think he was good enough for Victor. Still wasn’t entirely convinced Victor even really liked him all that much, but each with each day he put between himself and his mental breakdown, things were becoming all too clear.

 

               Yuri couldn’t leave things this way. It wasn’t fair. As nauseous as it made him feel, he had to have a real conversation with Victor. Explain what happened. Make sure the Russian understood that it was nothing he had done. Do what Phichit had been telling him to do all along.

 

               Let Victor decide if he still wanted to pursue something with Yuri once he had all the facts, and respect Victor’s choice no matter what it ended up to be. At the very least, they could be friends again. Yuri missed spending time with him. Missed the way he would laugh when someone told a bad joke. Missed spending time in the dance studio with him, dancing and stretching and purposefully saying things that made Yurio turn red in the face and stomp around sputtering in Russian.

 

               Even if there never would be anything more, Yuri wanted Victor his friend back.

 

               “[When and where have you set us up?]” Yuri asks, trying to keep a casual front and recognizing he’d failed by the knowing glint in Phichit’s eyes. He has noticed a few students stumbling into the cafeteria out of the corner of his eye and he hunches forward over the tabletop.

 

               “[You’re going to lunch with him. There’s a place Guang Hong told me about a few blocks away.]” Phichit grabbed his phone and began typing into it, probably sending Yuri directions and details if the way Yuri’s phone is buzzing in his pocket is any indication. “[You’re going to pretend to be surprised to see him. You think I’m meeting you for lunch. You have no idea I’m a devious, meddling devil.]”

 

               “[There is not a single person on this earth that is going to believe I don’t know you are a devious, meddling devil.]”

 

               “Touché.” Phichit rolled his eyes and Yuri couldn’t help but laugh, his mood finally rising and stabilizing for the first time since Chris’ party. “[Fine, don’t pretend you can’t imagine I would ever betray you and set you up like that, but do pretend you didn’t know Victor was going to be there. I have to preserve my air of mischievousness.]”

 

               “[I will, I will. Thanks, Phichit.]”

 

               “[Any time, my friend. Any time.]”

 

~

 

               Victor was nervous. Phichit had messaged him the location of a dim sum place a few blocks away from the dorm and assured Victor that Yuri would be there. The Japanese man was under the impression Phichit would be his lunch companion. The reality was that Yuri would be eating with Victor.

 

               If Yuri didn’t get one look at him and take off running in the opposite direction, that was.

 

               He paced back and forth in front of the restaurant for a full minute before being able to drag up the courage to actually go in. Victor had decided to be a little late for his appointment in the hopes that Yuri would get there first. That way Yuri would have fewer escape routes available to him should he choose to run.

 

               He had planned it perfectly.

 

               Yuri was at a table in the far corner, back turned towards the door. Victor thanked his lucky stars. He’d been afraid Yuri would catch sight of him right away and hit the ground running.

 

               Victor strode across the room trying to exude an air of confidence he wasn’t really feeling at the moment and slid into the booth across from Yuri in one fluid movement.

 

               “Hello, Yuri.” Victor smiled warmly, stuffing his hands in his pockets so that Yuri wouldn’t be able to see how hard they were shaking. “I was hoping to run into you here.”

 

               “Victor!?” Yuri squeaked and instantly turned red. Well, at least he hadn’t thrown himself out of the booth and sprinted for the door. Victor might have a chance.

 

               Victor watched as Yuri stared at him in suspicion from behind his blue frames, glasses reflecting off the low lighting and making it difficult for Victor to get a good look at his eyes. Yuri fidgeted from side to side, fingers tapping against the tabletop nervously and Victor couldn’t help but stare when Yuri sucked his bottom lip into his mouth and began to chew on it. After what felt like hours, the other man let out a resigned sigh and raised up a hand to rub circles on his forehead.

 

               “Phichit.” Yuri spat his friend’s name out like it was a curse. “I should have known he would set us up eventually.”

 

               “Don’t be too mad at him. I asked him to do this.” Victor was quick to come to Phichit’s defense. The last thing he wanted was to be the cause of a rift in their friendship. “Begged him really.”

 

               “You begged my best friend to set us up?” Yuri asked, removing the hand from his face in favor of staring at Victor in shock with his mouth slightly agape. “Why would you want to do that?”

 

               “Because you’ve been avoiding me and I wanted to see you.” Victor explained. He kept his tone light and airy. Trying to put Yuri at ease. “I wanted a chance to apologize for anything I might have done to offend you… And… And I miss you.”

 

               That last bit had come out softer and more vulnerable that Victor had wanted, but he couldn’t help it. He had missed Yuri and seeing him now, hearing his voice, being able to hold an actual conversation with him after a week and a half of radio silence had Victor’s brain feeling warm and mushy.

 

               He hadn’t realized how much Yuri’s quiet company had meant to him until it had been gone.

 

               “You barely know me.” Yuri’s response was defensive and Victor could see his body tensing from across the table.

 

               “I know.” Victor had to admit it was true. He didn’t know Yuri. Only knew what he had found out from others and the few tidbits the man himself had given him. “I don’t know you very well at all, but I would like to. I know I can be pushy sometimes. And overenthusiastic. Yurio is always quick to point out I can be a terrible pain in the ass, too, but I would never push you too hard on purpose and I am so, so sorry if I did it without realizing it.”

 

               “You still want to get to know me even after everything I did at Chris’ party?” Yuri sounded truly surprised.

 

               “Of course!” Victor winced at his knee jerk reaction. Yuri just raised an eyebrow and waited. “Why wouldn’t I? I… I just want to understand. Even if you don’t like me the way I like you, I still very much want to be at least friends.”

 

               Yuri looked at him. Really looked at him and Victor tried not to squirm under the intense scrutiny. He never had been a fan of long silences and the urge to fill the void between them with idle chatter was strong, but he resisted. This was too important to try and brush off just because he was feeling a little nervous.

 

               Whatever Yuri saw when he looked at Victor must have put him at ease and he let out a deep sigh.

 

               “I should explain what happened.”

 

               “You don’t have to if you don’t want to…”

 

               “I want to. Even if I didn’t, you deserve to know and you deserve to hear it from me and not from Phichit.” Yuri held up a hand as Victor opened his mouth to say something else. “Please, Victor. Let me explain first. I’m afraid if I don’t get this out there in one go, I’m not going to get it out at all.”

 

               Yuri fiddled with the trash from his straw, waving off a waiter as it seemed like someone had finally noticed that his lunch partner had arrived. Victor was thankful for the gesture. It would have been too easy for the interruption to cause Yuri to second guess he decision to open up to him.

 

               “I was embarrassed.” Victor rested his elbows on the table and leant forward as Yuri’s voice was almost too soft to be heard over the sound of the other diners. “When I woke up and I remembered what I’d done that night I… I was so embarrassed I literally forced myself into a panic attack. I was just so convinced I’d ruined everything. That I had run you off.”

 

               “Yuri…”

 

               Yuri shook his head and Victor snapped his mount shut again, tilting his head forward to indicate Yuri could continue.

 

               “Thinking about it logically now, I know that was the stupidest fucking thing to think, but that’s the problem with my panic attacks. I don’t think logically. I _can’t_ think logically. All I knew was that I had to get away from you. That if there was even the tiniest chance you could still want _anything_ with me, I had to get away until I could sort myself out and stabilize. Then, I kind of took the whole hiding thing and ran with it.”

 

               “Phichit may have mentioned that running and hiding is kind of your thing.” Victor was trying to lighten the mood in that instinctual way he always did, and he could see the beginnings of a smile on Yuri’s face. “I’m impressed, though. I was starting to think you’d found a way to become invisible.”

 

               Yuri laughed now. It wasn’t the full-bodied laugh Victor loved the most, but it warmed his heart to hear it. He let out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding. He had been scared he would never get to hear Yuri laugh again and now that he had, he felt an overwhelming sense of relief. Like the world was finally tilting back onto the proper axis.

 

               “You have no idea how much I was I could do that.” Yuri adjusted his glasses on his face and this time his smile was real and warm and exactly what Victor needed. He smiled in return.

 

               Victor felt Yuri’s leg bounce against the table. The Japanese man was still fidgeting. Victor had to bite the inside of his cheek to stop himself from reaching out and covering Yuri’s hands with his own.

 

               When it seemed like Yuri had run out of words, Victor took the lead again.

 

               “We should start over.”

 

               A startled sound fell from Yuri’s lips and his brow twisted in confusion.

 

               “Wha-?”

 

               “Let me explain.” Now it was Victor’s turn to hold up a hand as a sign for Yuri to hold onto his words. “First, I want you to know that I was in absolutely no way embarrassed by anything you did at Chris’ party. It was, in fact, the sexiest thing I have ever seen in my entire life. I loved every minute of it. You looked like you were having so much fun. And the way we danced together… Trust me, I am never going to be able to forget that as long as I live.”

 

               “But… What I am not entirely fond of is the thought that you drank the way you did because you thought I _expected_ those things from you. If I gave you the impression that I wanted you to be anything other than yourself, I apologize for that.” Now Victor did reach across the table and place both his hands over Yuri’s. When Yuri didn’t pull away he went on. “So, I want to start over. I want to be your friend, then, if you want, I want to be more than just a friend, but I want to do it right. I want to do it at our pace.”

 

               “Victor…” There were tears in the corners of Yuri’s eyes and his voice wavered. “Okay, okay. That’s a good idea. Fresh slate.”

 

               “Good.” Victor pulled his hands back and sat back against his seat. He flipped his hair out of his eyes and smiled, extending his right hand forward towards Yuri.

 

               “Hello, my name is Victor Nikiforov.”

 

               Yuri rolled his eyes but reached out a hand to shake Victor’s anyway.

 

               “And I am Yuri Katsuki. Nice to meet you.”

 

               “Nice to meet you. Has anyone ever told you that you are the most beautiful person in the world?”

 

               “Victor!”

 

~

 

               Victor felt like he was floating on air. Everything was going to be okay. Yuri didn’t hate him. Yuri didn’t want to cut off what they could possibly have before it even began.

 

               Yuri was letting him put an arm around his shoulder!

 

               They had spent the rest of the afternoon together, only rejoining their friends in time to meet for Yurio’s birthday dinner. Once they had arrived at the hot pot place Guang Hong had led them to, Yuri had motioned for Victor to slide into their end of the booth, taking his place at Victor’s side as though they had been sitting together their entire lives.

 

               Yuri had scooted closer, hips pressed together as Guang Hong and Leon squished into the booth with them. In order to save some space Victor had lifted his arm to rest it on the back of the booth and Yuri had actually shuffled closer. When Victor had taken a chance and lowered his arm so that it was resting across Yuri’s shoulder, Yuri didn’t pull away.

 

               “It’s good to see you two back to… Whatever it is you are.” Chris waved a hand through the air and Victor smiled brightly while Yuri just shook his head and fought down a blush. “You’re still doing the ‘no labels’ thing, right?”

 

               “For now.” Victor feels his chest swell with pride. He honestly doesn’t care if they ever label their relationship. So long as he gets to keep Yuri none of the rest of it matters. “If anything changes, you’ll be one of the first to know.”

 

               “Aw…” There is a telltale shutter sound from Phichit’s phone and the Thai man cackles with glee even as Yuri tries to lunge across the table in an unsuccessful attempt to grab the phone before Phichit can post the picture to Instagram. “Hashtag ‘Cutest Couple Ever’.”

 

               “One of these days I’m going to snap that thing in half.” Yuri grumbles, but settles back into Victor’s side with a minimum amount of further fuss.

 

               “Oi, I thought we were here to celebrate my birthday, not their stupid fucking relationship.” Yurio slams a hand down on the table and everyone jumps and looks over at him.

 

               “Sorry, sorry.” Yuri is quick to apologize as he always is. He doesn’t pull away from Victor though. “You’re turning nineteen, right?”

 

               They have a good time. It’s just the original study group again. Yurio hadn’t wanted anyone else, and, even though he wasn’t there from the beginning like the others he is more than one of them by this point.

 

               It turns out there isn’t really a hard and fast drinking age in Beijing and soon they are all significantly more relaxed due to the presence of alcohol. Yurio, either forgetting or choosing not to care about the hangover from hell he’d had before, has more than broken his own no alcohol rule. Yuri, as Victor expected, abstains this time around. Everyone else, not so much.

 

               Chris, apparently feeling as though Victor missed out by staying clear headed during his own birthday celebration, sets about rectifying this grave mistake with a fervor that would scare Victor if he wasn’t too inebriated to care.

 

               “You guys are so much fun!” Phichit is definitely the kind of drunk that loves anyone and everyone, much to Yurio’s dismay as Phichit is hugging him close while rubbing his cheek against the top of his head, mussing the blonde’s hair in the process. “I’m so glad I applied for this trip. We are like the best study group ever!”

 

               “Get the fuck off of me!” Yurio shoves Phichit away. The Thai man doesn’t seem too put out by this rejection, choosing to latch onto Chris who is on his other side instead.

 

               “Is his hair as soft as it looks?” Guang Hong’s eyes are wide and he tries to lean across the table to reach out for Yurio, but his elbow lands in a dish of some kind of sauce and he slips. Leo is quick to catch him before he can bang his head on the table, but Guang Hong’s reaction is only to start giggling.

 

               “Yes!” Phichit is now rubbing his cheek against Chris’ hair. Chris, for his part, doesn’t seem phased by his newest attachment at all. “It’s so soft and silky! Smells like strawberries!”

 

               “I do not smell like strawberries!” Yurio hisses.

 

               “Yes, you do.” Seung-Gil’s face is red and his words are slurred by this point. “We’re sharing a room this time. I saw your shampoo. It’s strawberry.”

 

               “Yurio has strawberry shampoo!” Victor sings out, ducking as Yurio flicks a glob of rice at him. “Yuri, did you hear that? Yurio’s shampoo is made of strawberries.”

 

               “I’m pretty sure that’s not what he meant…” Yuri shakes his head as Victor removes the arm around his shoulders for the first time that evening.

 

               Victor is feeling warm.

 

               It’s cold outside. He knows that. They had worn coats and scarves to get here, but now he is hot. It could be from the alcohol. It could be that they have stuffed nine people into a booth that is clearly made to seat six at the maximum. Whatever the reason, Victor is hot.

 

               He is hot and wearing too many clothes. So he takes off his shirt.

 

               “Whoo! Are we stripping now? Please say we’re stripping now?” Chris pushes Phichit off of him and follows Victor’s example. “No clothes party!”

 

               “Oh, god… We are going to become known as the group that can’t keep their fucking clothes on.” Yurio wails and slams his head down on the table. Otabeck, who appears to be just as quiet a drunk as he is sober, or maybe he’s had less to drink than Victor thought he had, pats him on the back. “Beka, I don’t want to be known as the group that can’t keep their fucking clothes on.”

 

               “I think it might be time to go back to the dorm.” Otabeck looks across the table as he says this and Victor follows his line of sight to see that he is looking at Yuri who is now nodding enthusiastically.

 

               Well, that’s no good. Victor doesn’t want to go back to the dorm. If he goes back to the dorm, then he has to go back to the room he shares with Phichit and Yuri won’t be in that room because Yuri is staying with…

 

               Victor isn’t actually sure who Yuri is staying with. All he knows is that someone isn’t him and that’s all that matters.

 

               “We still have half a bottle left!” Victor announces loudly enough that a few heads from other tables turn their way. “We can’t let it go to waste!”

 

               “Can’t let it go to waste!” Leo echoes, just as loud. The American reaches out for the half empty bottle of some kind of Chinese liquor, Victor didn’t actually catch the name of it, and begins to pour out shots to pass around the table.

 

               “Cheers!” Phichit is laughing as he raises his glass.

 

               “Ganbei!” Guang Hong shouts back and everyone repeats the foreign word as they throw back their shots.

 

               Yuri and Otabeck exchange another look.

 

               They look like they want to suggest going back again.

 

               This calls for drastic measures.

 

               Victor removes his pants.

 

               “ **Put those back on!** ” The pants had landed on Yurio’s head and the blonde wadded them up and threw them back, his usually impeccable aim being affected by his level of intoxication. They miss Victor completely and end up on Leo’s head instead. “ **We are not going to become the naked group!** ”

 

               Victor isn’t sure exactly who Yurio is yelling at as only Victor and Otabeck speak Russian, but he doesn’t let it bother him. Where he was hot before, now he is starting to feel cooler. In order to remedy this, he latches himself onto the closest source of heat.

 

               The closest source of heat turns out to be Yuri, much to Victor’s delight.

 

               Phichit leans across the table, either not seeing or not caring that he is sitting in a plate of dumplings. Yuri is distracted trying to both escape Victor’s grasp and trying to get Victor’s pants back from Leo to notice as he takes a picture. Victor smiles and nuzzles into the nape of Yuri’s neck. He can’t wait to see the picture in the morning.

 

               He ends up dressed sooner than he would have wanted.

 

               Because it is Yuri who is pulling his pants back on and rebuttoning his shirt, Victor complies with nothing more than a few subdued giggles. Because it is Yuri who tucks him back into his coat and wraps his scarf back around his neck, he lets it happen.

 

               Because it is Yuri who wraps an arm around his waist as they make their weaving way back to the dorm, Victor doesn’t protest and allows himself to be led up the stairs and back to his room.

 

               Only because it’s Yuri.

 

               And not all because the world is spinning and suddenly all the colors are just that much too bright. Nope. Not at all.

 

               When Yuri slips Victor’s coat back off again once they are in Victor and Phichit’s dorm room, Victor let it happen. Yuri pulls back the blanket on the bed and forces Victor under it, tucking in the edges as Victor wiggles around on the thin dorm mattress in an effort to get comfortable. A glass of water is placed on his bedside table along with a packet of pills. Victor can see a similar set up left on Phichit’s table as well, the Thai man already snoring deeply from his own bed.

 

               “ **Oh, Yuri. My Yuri. Wonderful, perfect, amazing Yuri. You take such good care of me. I wish you would take care of me for the rest of my life.** ” Victor grabs at Yuri’s hand as the other man tries to leave. Yuri pauses for a moment, smiling warmly down at Victor before tucking his arms back under the covers and rising to go again.

 

               “ **I love you.** ”

 

               Yuri doesn’t say anything back. At first Victor is sad, but then the room shifts again and he groans and closes his eyes. He can hear Yuri whispering a ‘good night’ before the door clicks closed behind him and then Victor is left in the dark.

 

               In the morning, he will wake up in a blind panic as he remembers what he has said to Yuri a few moments ago. Then he will remember he said it in Russian and Yuri does not speak Russian.

 

               He will be both relieved and annoyed in equal measures.

 

               Next time he says these words to Yuri he will make a point of being sober. He will make a point of saying them in English and he will wait to hear Yuri’s response instead of just letting him walk out the door.

 

               But first he will take the pain medication Yuri had so thoughtfully left out for him and try to rouse his throbbing body in time to go to class.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Another quick update for everyone! Updates should be fairly quick and regular for the foreseeable future. I managed to break the shit out of my ankle at my competition last weekend. So I have replaced my usual horseback riding time during the week with writing time until I'm better.
> 
> My loss is your gain!
> 
> Fair warning, but there is a smidge of tooth rotting fluff ahead!

March – China

 

               Things are progressing nicely in Victor’s opinion.

 

               They still aren’t labeling anything. The best Victor can come up with is that they are now friends who are comfortable with touching each other. Like how Victor sometimes leans against Chris or how Yuri and Phichit can recline on a couch together with legs in each other’s laps. So, like that.

 

               Only it’s not really like that.

 

               Because Chris and he don’t ever hold hands the way he does with Yuri. Yuri doesn’t lean forward and brush Phichit’s bangs out of his eyes sometimes when they are studying together late in the evening the way he will do with Victor.

 

               So, they are like friends, but not like friends at the same time.

 

               Like friends with benefits?

 

               Maybe, if you can call holding hands or hugging a benefit. Which, Victor does, but he doesn’t think that’s exactly the kind of benefits the phrased was coined to describe.

 

               But this time the week before Yuri had been avoiding even being in the same room as him and now he was curled up against Victor’s side on a couch in the common area, trying to read a book while everyone else is laughing at some Chinese movie playing on the lone television. So in that aspect, things are progressing and Victor is content.

 

               “White Day?” There is a commercial on now, and Yurio’s question causes Victor to perk up from his own thoughts and drop back into the conversation. “What the hell is that?”

 

               There is a shift of attention towards Guang Hong who takes one of his headphones out of his ear and tilts his head in curiosity.

 

               It’s actually Yuri who answers.

 

               “It’s a holiday. Like a companion day to Valentine’s Day.” Now everyone is looking at him and Yuri sighs. “It started in Japan, but I think it’s spread into a good part of Asia by now. China, South Korea… I think a few other places.”

 

               “Yes, it has grown in popularity back home now that I think of it.” Seung-Gil appears to mull this over for minute before shrugging. “I can’t say I’ve paid it much mind, though.”

 

               “Oh! It’s the day when you make me buy chocolate for all the people who gave them to me on Valentine’s Day, right?” Phichit’s eyes light up and he claps his hands excitedly. “I remember now.”

 

               “Yes, it’s the day when I make you buy chocolates to give back to everyone who gave you something on Valentine’s Day.” Yuri sounds tired but he shifts a bit in Victor’s loose embrace so that he is sitting more upright, clearly realizing his friends are going to want a more in depth explanation.

 

               “Isn’t Valentine’s Day supposed to be for people who are already a couple?” Leo asks. He grabs the remote from where it’s resting on the ground nearby and pauses the television before the movie can come back on. “That’s how it is in America at least.”

 

               “That’s how it is in Russia, too.” Victor supplies. He hadn’t thought about Valentine’s Day last month. He hadn’t been officially dating Yuri back then, and Yuri hadn’t brought it up. Besides, it had been Chris’ birthday. That hadn’t left a lot of time for Victor to think about doing something romantic.

 

               “In Japan, we do that more on Christmas.” Yuri purses his lips and the little wrinkle he gets on the bridge of his nose when he is deep in thought appears. Victor suddenly overwhelmed by the urge to place a light kiss right there to help smooth it away. “On Valentine’s Day you give chocolate to people you like and admire. Traditionally it would be like a girl giving it to her friends or a guy she has a crush on. They get exchanged in the workplace, too… It’s gotten a bit more complicated recently, but it’s still mostly girls giving it to guys. Then on White Day the guy is supposed to give a gift back to everyone who gave him something on Valentine’s Day. It’s mostly a commercial holiday to get people to buy candy and gifts they don’t need to get.”

 

               “You should have seen our dorm room last year. I almost couldn’t get through the door with all the chocolates piled up in there.” Phichit groaned at the memory. “I thought Yuri was going to go broke trying to make everyone received something in return.”

 

               “Why would Yuri have gone broke? Shouldn’t you have bought your own return gifts?” Yurio scoffed.

 

               “Oh, did I not specify? Most of that mountain of chocolates were for Yuri.”

 

               Yuri turns a shade of red Victor didn’t think was possible for a human being to turn. If everyone wasn’t staring at him before, they are now. Victor sits back even further so he can stare easier.

 

               What the hell?

 

               “I’m… I’m in a lot of clubs.” Yuri shrugs, shuffling his shoulders a bit under his friends’ scrutiny. “It didn’t really mean anything. Just people being polite.”

 

               Victor is very sure Yuri’s fellow students weren’t just being polite. This is another one of those moments where Yuri either doesn’t recognize how special he is, or is too afraid to think that way just in case he may be wrong.

 

               There is something welling up in the pit of his stomach. It burns and makes him slightly nauseous. His arms itch to grab Yuri and pull the other man back into his chest and never let him go. He catches himself before he can glare at where Phichit is now laughing and patting Yuri on the knee, saying something in Japanese that Victor can’t understand.

 

               Oh. This is how it feels to be jealous.

 

               That’s never happened before.

 

               Victor is brought back to earth by Chris waving a hand in front of his face. By this point, Yuri has gotten up and is now chasing Phichit around the room for some reason and Chris slips into the spot he’s left behind.

 

               “ _You checked out for a minute there. Where’d you go?_ ” Chris takes a quick look around the room, probably checking to make sure Yurio is distracted and not about to yell at them for speaking in French in his presence again. The blonde Russian seems distracted enough as he is engrossed in conversation with Guang Hong and Leo, the former of which has picked up the tail end of Yuri’s explanation and is filling in more details.

 

               Victor chooses not to answer the question. Instead, he asks one of his own.

 

               “ _Where do you think I can get some chocolates before tomorrow?_ ”

 

               “ _You might want to have a conversation with the boyfriend about that before you run off half-cocked. Neither you nor I know enough about the significance of this holiday in Japanese culture. You’re more likely to insult him than impress him._ ” Victor knows Chris is right, but he huffs and crossed his arms over his chest stubbornly anyway. “ _You just got back on cuddling terms with him. You wouldn’t want to ruin that._ ”

 

               “ _No… But if I do it right, I could improve our terms past cuddling._” The wheels in Victor’s brain are turning. As much as he loves having Yuri by him in any capacity, he does desperately want to test the waters. He hasn’t been able to figure out the best way to do that without sending Yuri running away from him again, though.

 

               They haven’t even kissed yet, for Christ’s sake.

 

               “ _I know I may have mentioned this before, but you are in way over your head with this._ ” Chris doesn’t seem concerned despite his words. He actually looks happy for Victor. “ _If you don’t want to discuss it with Yuri, talk to Phichit. You know he’d be more than happy to set Yuri up again._ ”

 

               “Why are you talking about me?” Victor just about jumps out of his skin as Phichit leans over the back of the couch and interjects his face in between them. “I don’t speak French, but I can recognize my own name. And Yuri’s name. And how to tell when there is plotting afoot.”

 

               Victor does a quick look around the room, only to find Yuri is now all the way by the vending machines having a conversation with JJ. He lets out a sigh of relief. Having Phichit catching them talking about Yuri behind his back was bad enough. Having Yuri catch him would have been nothing short of relationship suicide.

 

               “We could have been talking about Russian Yuri. You don’t know.” Victor knows this is a bad lie even as it is leaving his lips. They never call Russian Yuri anything other than Yurio these days and Phichit knows it.

 

               “I suppose you could have been, but you weren’t.” Phichit raises an eyebrow and swings his body over the back of the couch, wiggling in so that he is now between Chris and Victor as they both scramble to avoid being kicked in the face. “Whatever insane thing you’re planning I can help. I’m fantastic with stupid ideas.”

 

                 “It’s true. He is.” Chris agrees.

 

               “Probably best not to discuss this right here, though.” Phichit shoots a pointed glance over at where Yuri and JJ are now apparently discussing the merits of acoustic versus electric guitars. “Why don’t we go back to our room? You know, while you know who is distracted. JJ can be particularly longwinded on this subject, and my dear friend is too polite to cut him off, so we should have plenty of time.”

 

               They make their escape quickly and efficiently. No one says another word until they are safely behind the locked door of the dorm room Victor and Phichit are currently sharing.

 

               “Alright. What’s the bad idea?” Phichit plops down onto his own bed and crossed his legs underneath him. Chris does the same and Victor mirrors both of their positions on his own bed. “Does it have anything to do with White Day?”

 

               “It does.” Victor confirms. “Should I ask him on a date?”

 

               “Nope.” Phichit shrugs at Victor’s crestfallen expression. “What? You heard Yuri. Dates are more for Christmas. If you want to do something for White Day, you don’t want to make it an official date. You want to give him some chocolate, preferably when the two of you are alone, and then ask him to lunch or something. Totally casual. Then you can have your date and Yuri doesn’t take it the wrong way. He’s not totally insecure about gender roles to the best of my knowledge, but you do have to remember that tomorrow is for the stereotypical ‘man’ in the relationship to offer the gifts. Better not to open that can of worms if you don’t have to.”

 

               “See? I told you Phichit would know what to do.” Chris seems proud of his suggestion. Victor isn’t quite sure when it happened as he has been pretty wrapped up in the wonder that is Yuri Katsuki, but it looks as though Chris and Phichit have forged a fairly strong friendship. “He’s right. You should keep it casual. You’re pretty good at generalized flirting. Play to your strengths.”

 

               “I _am_ good at flirting.” Victor mulls this over for a minute. “I’m assuming this means I should not go out and get a ridiculously large bouquet of roses, tie some heart-shaped balloons to them and present it in a gift basket filled with chocolate and stuffed animals at an expensive and classy restaurant while a violinist plays in the background.”

 

               “Oh, god, no.”

 

               “Are you insane?”

 

               “Calm down! It was a joke!” It was honestly about half a joke at best, but it was nice to cross some options off his list. So grand romantic gestures were a no go, at least for now. “I get it, I get it. Get something small, don’t draw too much attention to it, and act like I just want to spend time with him because I want to, not because it’s supposed to be some kind of special day. I think I can do that.”

 

               Phichit and Chris exchange worried looks that clearly showed how nervous they were that Victor might _not_ be able to pull off something so lowkey.

 

               “I feel like we should confiscate his credit card.” Chris suggested and Phichit nodded.

 

               “Come on, guys. You don’t have to do that. I can behave.”

 

               “We’re confiscating the card.” Before Victor could protest, Phichit had gotten to his feet to do just that.

 

               Victor did have to admit, if only in his head, that probably was a good idea.

 

~

 

               Guang Hong has assisted with finding a place where Victor, Yuri, and Yurio could continue the younger Russian’s dance practices. Usually after their practices the three of them would walk back to the dorms together to shower and then meet the others either in the common area or one of the libraries on campus for their study group.

 

               Today, Yurio had scampered off with some muttered excuse and Yuri had suggested stopping for a bite to eat before heading to meet everyone else.

 

               They ended up at a small café they found tucked away in one of the more sheltered corners of the campus. It was warm and intimate and perfect. Especially since Yuri had been the one to ask and the one to point it out.

 

               “You know, if you ever wanted to, you could make a decent living at a choreographer.” Yuri took a sip of his green tea and smiled at Victor from across the table.

 

               “I’ll keep that in mind if my current career path doesn’t work out.” Victor smiles back and stirs a dollop of honey into his own tea.

 

               “Hm…” Yuri tilts his head and looks at Victor thoughtfully. “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever asked exactly what you are studying for yet.”

 

               “I don’t believe you have.” Victor agrees amiably. “To be fair, I haven’t asked you either. It has something to do with accounting? I have noticed you tend to complain about your accounting professor often enough.”

 

               “That’s a part of it.” Yuri chuckles lightly. “I’m majoring in business administration, with a concentration in international business practices. I know I told you Mari has plans to try to expand our branch outside of Japan. For some reason, she seems to think I’d be the better option to set that plan into motion than she would. Something about me being more conscientious than she would be about offending foreign business partners.”

 

               “I can see that.” Victor isn’t lying. He can. Yuri has been incredibly attentive so far, always listening when other students would explain some kind of tradition or social custom of their home country. In fact, most everyone else seems to be coasting by with a bare minimum of effort when it came to blending into their new surroundings. They all very much stand out as the tourists they are, whereas Yuri is blending in quite nicely to each new background so far. He’s clearly been doing more than his fair share of research.

 

               “What are you studying for?”

 

               “Ah… Marketing.” Victor waves a hand through the air, trying to convey a sense of vagueness. “That’s what the degree will say in any case. I’ve kind of been collecting classes in a variety of subjects, all loosely tied to business marketing. My father owns an investment firm and I’ve always liked the advertising aspect of what we do. I thought I might like to help him in that department when I graduate. Taking in new clients and helping them build an image or brand.”

 

               “You would be good at that.” Victor senses that Yuri wants to say something else, but after a brief second’s pause, he must think the better of it. Instead, he perks ups and abruptly changes the subject.

 

               “I almost forgot. I have something for you.”

 

               Yuri bends over and pulls his bag up into his lap, bowing his head as he digs around inside it. Eventually he pulls out a small box and places it on the table, sliding it across to where Victor can reach out and grab it.

 

               “What is it?” Victor is so excited he’s concerned his hands are about to start shaking as he undoes the green ribbon wrapped around the brown box. “Oh…”

 

               They are chocolates. About a dozen, nestled in individual paper cups. Victor’s breath catches in the back of his throat. He hadn’t let himself hope Yuri might think to get him something. Now that he has, Victor feels the warm rush of joy running through his body.

 

               “I know we didn’t exactly do the usual Valentine’s thing… For either of our countries.” Yuri is shuffling nervously in his seat now, tips of his ears red and his eyes trained of the table directly in front of Victor. “But you seemed to be really interested when we were talking about White Day yesterday, so I thought you might appreciate the gesture.”

 

               “Yuri…” Victor resolutely refuses to cry, no matter how much he wants to. In order to gather his emotions back into place, he pulls his own gym back up from under his chair. He rummages around inside for a brief moment, before his fingers wrap around the box he’d stuffed in there before leaving that morning.

 

               Victor’s box is slightly larger than Yuri’s was, black, and the bow is a bright gold and tied in an intricate knot that resembles a rose. Yuri’s eyes widen behind his glasses as he realizes exactly what Victor is offering him. Where Victor tried to hide the tremors in his hands, Yuri does not, and it takes him a bit longer to slide the ribbon off without disrupting the beautiful golden bow in order to peek inside.

 

               “You didn’t have to get me anything.” Yuri’s voice is barely above a whisper and Victor can’t help but smile softly in encouragement.

 

               “You didn’t have to get me anything, but you did.” Victor points out. “I wanted to. I know it’s not really in keeping with the tradition to a ‘T’… But I figure it’s the thought that counts, right?”

 

               “Of course.” Yuri is looking up at Victor now, his eyes sparkling in that way that causes the bottom of Victor’s stomach to drop out and his heart to do flips in his chest. “I’m honestly a little surprised you kept it to one moderately sized box of chocolates.”

 

               “About that…” Victor laughs and rubs the nape of his neck in a nervous tic. “I may have had plans that were significantly more elaborate than one simple box, but I might have been…Er… Persuaded to tone it down some.”

 

               Yuri narrows his eyes for a second before shaking his head and reaching out to grab Victor’s hand.

 

               “Thank you for finding a way to restrain yourself. I greatly appreciate it.”

 

               Victor wishes he could be offended, but he can’t be. Not when Yuri is holding his hand and looking at him like he is the single most important person in the universe in that moment. Not when his other hand is still wrapped tightly around a little brown box with a green bow.

 

               “I restrained myself _this_ time.” Victor emphasizes and Yuri rolls his eyes and groans, but doesn’t pull away. “I still have plenty of time to literally and figuratively sweep you off your feet.”

 

               “I was afraid you were going to say that…”

 

               Victor doesn’t say anything in return. He just smiles and holds Yuri’s hand and then they laugh together. Eventually they tuck their chocolates away and finish their meal.

 

               They walk arm in arm back to the dorm. Yuri rests his head on Victor’s shoulder as Victor talks about some of the places he was thinking about showing everyone once they arrive in St. Petersburg. As they reach the foot of the building, they pause, Yuri turning and wrapping his arms around Victor’s neck, while Victor’s hands naturally go to their favorite spot at Yuri’s waist.

 

               Victor is about to say that they should get going if they want to have time to take a quick shower before they are supposed to meet up with the others. It’s not that he really wants to go, but if they don’t turn up soon someone is bound to coming looking for them.

 

               He wants to say something, but he doesn’t.

 

               Instead, Yuri rises up onto the balls of his feet and kisses him.

 

               It wasn’t much, just a quick peck on the lips. A soft brush of feeling that set every nerve in Victor’s body on fire. His head spun and he instinctively tightened his grip on Yuri’s waist in a subconscious effort to keep Yuri in place until his logical thoughts could catch up to and categorize what had just happened.

 

               Yuri had kissed him.

 

               _Yuri_ had kissed _him_.

 

               “That was okay, right?” Yuri sounds more curious than nervous, but Victor knows even the most infinitesimal misstep here could tip the scales the wrong way and send Yuri running from him.

 

               Victor takes a deep breath in the hopes it will help clear his head. Instead he gets a nose full of Yuri’s body wash. It smells like spring and melting snow and Victor feels as though his entire body is spinning.

 

               “That was more than okay.”

 

               His voice is rough and his eyes search Yuri’s face for any hint of hesitation. He finds none. It’s almost as though now that the decision has been made, Yuri is at peace. Victor ducks his head so he can rest his forehead against Yuri’s and the other man rubs a thumb gently at the nape of Victor’s neck, right on his hairline.

 

               “They’re going to start wondering where we are soon.” Yuri doesn’t sound like he cares too much about their friends right now, and he doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to extricate himself from their embrace. “We should go.”

 

               “I know.”

 

               Victor doesn’t move either. He legs still feel a little too much like jelly to be supporting his full weight at the moment.

 

               They stay that way for another long minute before they mutually separate. Even then, it is only to put a few centimeters of space between them. Just enough so that they can maneuver their way through the dorm and into the second floor hall where their rooms are located.

 

               Victor doesn’t want to leave Yuri’s side, but he knows he has to. They need to shower and study. Yuri has a test that needs to be completed within the next two hours and Victor has promised to proof read a paper Chris has written. They have obligations.

 

               As they part ways, Victor into his room and Yuri to walk off down the hall to his own, they share a look that set off sparks in Victor’s brain.

 

               Victor waits until the door is safely closed behind him before he punches a fist into the air with a loud shout and an accompanying victory dance.

 

               He’s never felt more alive in his entire life.

 

~

 

               “[How did you manage to convince him not to buy half the chocolate in China?]” Yuri and Phichit were at the far end of the long table the study group had commandeered in the library. Victor had been at Yuri’s side for most of the afternoon, but he’d left with Chris and Yurio on a coffee run a few minutes prior. Phichit had barely waited for them to turn the corner before he’d leapt on Yuri and began demanding, in Japanese, that he spill all the details. For once, Yuri had been happy to comply.

 

               Well, he’d left out the part about the kiss. It wasn’t like he didn’t want to tell Phichit. It was still too new, right now. His nerves still too raw. He suspected Victor might be telling Chris and Yurio all about it right that very moment, but he wanted to keep that moment to himself for the time being. His own private fond memory.

 

               “[Easy. Chris and I confiscated his credit card.]” If Phichit knew Yuri was holding something back from him, he wasn’t letting on. “[I wish I could have seen the look on his face when you gave him your gift. I don’t think the idea of you giving him something even crossed his mind.]”

 

               “[I’m glad you weren’t there. If you had been, the face he made would be all over Instagram by now.]” Yuri poked his friend in the shoulder and Phichit shrugged. “[It looked like he was about to cry, to be honest.]”

 

               “[Aw….! He is such a big sap. I love it!]” Phichit claps gleefully, ignoring the pointed glare his exclamation pulls from Seung-Gil. “[Did he blush? Please tell me he did! He looks so adorable when he blushes.]”

 

               “[I… I think so?]” Yuri feels his own cheeks heat. “[I’m not sure. I was too nervous to look at his face at first. I kept thinking he would be upset. That he would think I was insinuating he was a girl or something like that.]”

 

               “[You have no idea how hard it was for me not to tell you he was planning on getting you something.]” Phichit sighs. “[I had this steamy pile of gossip and no one but Chris to share it with. I’m such a good friend. Keeping his secret like that.]”

 

               “[I’d already pretty much figured it out without you confirming it for me.]” Yuri pointed out. He would have had to be blind to miss the look on Victor’s face when they had been talking about exchanging gifts the day before.

 

               That and Victor didn’t strike him as the kind of person to let a gift giving opportunity to get away unused.

 

               “[I know, I know. I’m still proud of my resolve anyway.]”

 

               “[Thanks. I owe you one. I’m glad I didn’t know for sure. That just made the surprise that much better.]”

 

               “[Don’t mention it. That’s what friends are for.]” Phichit props his chin on his hands and gives Yuri a thorough once over. “[You two are official, official now, right? Or are you still doing the undefined relationship thing? I’ve got to admit, it’s kind of driving me crazy not knowing.]”

 

               Yuri shrugged. “[I don’t know. I suppose we should discuss it sometime soon.]”

 

               Phichit groaned and pulled his hand out from under his chin and let his head bang against the table.

 

               “[How did you two go from being unable to be in the same room together, to being all over each other, to exchanging chocolate on White Day in the space of like two weeks _without_ talking about what your relationship is exactly?]”

 

               “[We’re still feeling each other out. It’s complicated.]” As far as Yuri was concerned it was complicated. He knew he had strong feelings for Victor. Knew that Victor most likely had strong feelings right back. For any other couple that might have been enough, but they weren’t like any other couple. There were still things Victor didn’t know about Yuri, things Yuri didn’t know about Victor, too, he was sure.

 

               And then there was the deadline hanging over their heads they had to consider. In less than ten months Victor was going back to Russia and Yuri would be back in Japan. They would be separated by an entire continent, living completely separate lives.

 

               One day, sooner than either of them would like, they were going to have to go their separate ways no matter how much it hurt.

 

               “[When you sort it out, let me know.]” Phichit looked like he wanted to say something further, but he was interrupted by Leo catching his attention.

 

               “Hey, can you drill me on our notes from our Cultural Studies class?” Leo held out a stack of flashcards for Phichit to take.

 

               “Of course!” Phichit chirped as he accepted the stack, pausing to glance back at Yuri. “[We will continue this conversation later.]”

 

               Yuri laughed and nodded, turning back to his own stack of notes.

 

               It was tough to concentrate when all he could think about was when he was going to get to kiss Victor again.

 

               It was a good kind of distracted, though, the kind Yuri hadn’t even known he was missing from his life until it had happened.

 

               For the first time in a long time, Yuri was content.

 

               He just hoped that feeling would last.

 

~

 

               Victor sighed dramatically.

 

               It was the fifth such sigh since they had left the library.

 

               “I’ve changed my mind. I liked it better when the two of you were still doing that whole ‘will they, won’t they’ dance.” Yurio grumbled. Chris and Victor had offered to go with him to get coffee and snacks for the group and the three of them were now huddled around a table in the Starbucks in the lobby of the library waiting for their orders to be done. “At least then you were quieter. **Fucking idiot.** ”

 

               “Oh, what name did he call you this time?” Chris asked cheerfully.

 

               “He just said I was a fucking idiot. All things considered, that’s one of his milder insults.” Victor couldn’t be bothered by Yurio’s bad attitude. Not today. Not after Yuri had kissed him.

 

               He still couldn’t believe it.

 

               Still expected to wake up in his bed only to find everything that had happened that day was nothing more than a dream.

 

               “You still haven’t told us what happened on your date.” Chris winked and settled deeper into his chair. “It must have been something special. I don’t think the poor boy has been able to keep his eyes off you all evening.”

 

               “Not that Victor can keep his eyes off him either.” Someone really should tell Yurio not to roll his eyes with such force just in case they rolled into the back of his skull and got stuck there one of these days. “You know, when I agreed to leave you two alone this afternoon, I was under the impression it would make your lovesickness better, not worse.”

 

               “I don’t recall promising you that.” Victor was now much more aware of the timing for Yurio lashing out and dodged the flat of the teen’s hand before it could connect with the back of his head. It probably helped that Yuri wasn’t there distracting Victor with his very presence again. “What can I say? When you’re in love, what the point of hiding it?”

 

               Yurio stuck his tongue out and gagged. Chris merely clapped him on the back.

 

               “I’m glad you sorted it out.” Chris now poked him lightly on his bicep. “Spill it, lover boy. What happened?”

 

               “He did it again, Chris!” Victor cheeks were starting to ache from all the smiling he’d been doing lately. Not that he cared. “I was just about to give him my gift and he reached into his bag and gave me a box of chocolates first!”

 

               “Sounds like something out of a movie if you ask me.”

 

               “And not one of the good ones.” Yurio was quick to cut in. “One of the girly ones with sappy music and clichés.”

 

               “I couldn’t make this up if I wanted to.” Victor was losing some of his elation the longer he was away from Yuri. He’d only been gone for ten minutes, tops, but it felt like ten hours. “I like it better this way, though. It’s like… We’re equals. Come to think of it, it would have been lopsided if only one of us had gotten the other something.”

 

               “I’m glad it worked out. Now, aren’t you glad Phichit and I made sure you couldn’t go overboard?”

 

               Victor nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, definitely. This was so much better.”

 

               “Still couldn’t stop you from getting the fancy gold ribbon, though.” Yurio grunted and got to his feet as the barista called out their names to pick up their order. “You are such a dramatic ass.”

 

               “Oh! This time he insulted you in English!” Chris bounced to his feet and Victor followed suit. They paused in their conversation for a moment to sort out drink trays and paper bags before picking up the conversation again as they walked away. “That can’t be all. I mean, I know you would have been thrilled about the whole equal gift exchange thing, but you seem beyond thrilled.”

 

               Victor hesitates.

 

               On the one hand, Chris is his best friend. He tells Chris everything. Chris has his back in more ways than one.

 

               On the other hand, he’s feeling awfully selfish. Like he wants to keep Yuri to himself for now. Wants to hold onto that moment in front of the dorm and examine it from every angle before he releases it back into the world for public consumption.

 

               He dithers and thinks and uses the distraction of trying to hold open the door to the stairwell while laden down with their drinks and bags to avoid answering the question while he comes to a decision.

 

               He decides not to say anything. At least not until he can talk to Yuri about it. Maybe have their second kiss first. That is something he definitely wants. No, not just definitely. Desperately.

 

               “Isn’t that enough? It means he wants to be with me after all!” Victor is quick to fall into his usual upbeat tone. He’s sure Chris will still have his suspicions, but he can’t be bothered to care. “It’s just nice to know all that cuddling meant something.”

 

               “You mean it meant something other than just grossing the rest of us out?” Yurio grunts as he stumbles and has to twist in order to keep on his feet.

 

               “Tough carrying the weight of all that teen angst around, isn’t it?” Victor can’t help but tease. Luckily Yurio’s hand are full and his balance compromised or else Victor is sure he would not be able avoid any new bruises this time. “In any case, that’s really all there was to it.”

 

               Chris doesn’t look like he believes him, but he lets the subject go as they reach the correct floor.

 

               Victor feel the familiar rush of blood throughout his body as he catches sight of Yuri slumped over the table with his nose in a textbook. He is sure by now that this feeling will never get old.

 

               Instinctively, he knows that he will never not miss Yuri when they are apart. That there will never come a time when his mood won’t instantly lift the moment he sees the other man. Chris would call him dramatic. Phichit would say his head is full of romantic mush. Yurio would say he’s lost his goddamn mind.

 

               Yurio would probably be the closest to being right.

 

               Victor has lost his mind. That has to be it. Because right now Victor isn’t thinking about the end of the year at all. Isn’t thinking about it, not because it’s not coming. It’s definitely coming.

 

               No, he’s not thinking about it because he has already decided it doesn’t have to mean the end. Yuri had invited him back to Japan once. Sure, he was drunk when he’d said it, and it hadn’t been mentioned again, but there has to be something in the saying that you are the most honest and real you that you can be when under the influence.

 

               If there was a chance for Victor to keep Yuri once the year was up, he was going to latch onto it with all his strength.

 

               Now that he had gotten Yuri back, he was never going to let him slip through his fingers again.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Another massive thanks to everyone who has left a comment or a kudos!
> 
> Enjoy!

               March – China

 

               Victor had kissed Yuri six times now.

 

               They had kissed six times and Victor remembered every single one.

 

               After their first kiss in front of the dorm, it had taken them two days to have their second kiss. This time it had been Victor who initiated it, albeit slightly by accident. It had been late and they had been the last ones to leave the library due to Victor forgetting about a quiz that was due until the last second. Yuri had offered to keep him company and as they had been packing up their things to leave, Victor had leant over. He’d intended to kiss Yuri’s cheek, but the other man turned his head at the last second and Victor had landed on his lips instead.

 

               Yuri had blushed that time and turned away quickly, keeping himself busy by packing away the rest of this things. Victor hadn’t missed the bright grin on his face, though.

 

               Their third kiss had also been Victor’s doing. This time on purpose. They had been early to the dance studio the next morning and they had been sitting on the floor, legs spread and facing each other. Yuri was holding Victor’s wrists as he leant back, pulling Victor forward into a deep stretch. After Yuri had counted to ten, they switched, but instead of Victor leaning back smoothly, he had paused right as they had reached their midway point and changed trajectory.

 

               That kiss had lasted significantly longer than the other two, only the thought of Yurio’s impending arrival breaking them apart.

 

               The fourth kiss had been Yuri making the first move again.

 

               They had been curled up together on Yuri’s bed in the dorm he was currently sharing with JJ, the Canadian having gone out for the night with Isabella and some of her friends, watching a movie on Yuri’s laptop. Victor had been half asleep, propped up with his back against Yuri’s pillow, with Yuri snuggled against his chest right under his chin. Victor wasn’t even sure what the movie had even been about between his exhaustion and the feeling of Yuri’s chest rising and falling underneath his palm.

 

               He felt Yuri move, head tilting up as Victor inclined his downwards to see what all the movement was about. Then there was a soft pressure against his lips. There was a gentle brush of sensation and then Yuri had turned his eyes back to the screen and nuzzling against Victor’s collar bones in a way that made Victor’s heart physically ache.

 

               The fifth and sixth time happened one right after the other.

 

               There had been another birthday party. This one for a student they didn’t know well. The student had invited the whole class and Yuri had felt like it would have been rude not to at least make an appearance. Especially since the party was taking place in the common area of the dorm. Victor didn’t hold any such obligatory feelings, but since Yuri was determined to go, he found himself being drug along.

 

               It had been several hours before Yuri had started to look uncomfortable. By that time, all forty students were crammed into a space that wasn’t quite big enough to hold that many people, plus some DJ equipment someone had rented for Otabeck to use. This time, instead of letting Yuri head to the table where a vast array of alcoholic beverages had been laid out, Victor had suggested they take a quick walk outside in the hopes that the winter chill would help cool them off.

 

               It had snowed the day before and everything had turned to slush by now. As they went to turn a corner Yuri slipped and grabbed Victor to help steady himself. Only, Victor wasn’t exactly steady either and they both went down. Tangled limbs and startled yelps and Victor’s knee digging into Yuri’s stomach.

 

               Victor was stammering apologies, trying to untangle their bodies enough to get the brunt of his weight off Yuri when he realizes the other man doesn’t seem upset at all. He’s laughing and the absurdity of the situation hit Victor full on and he’s laughing, too.

 

               Two grown men lying on an icy sidewalk in Beijing at two in the morning giggling as the wet chill seeps into their coats.

 

               Yuri slides his fingers through the fine hairs at the nape of Victor’s neck and this time they meet in the middle.

 

               They kiss until their fingertips go numb and then Victor pulls away as he stumbles to his feet, holding a hand out for Yuri to take. Yuri is back on his feet and just keeps going, bringing their lips together again under the moonlight.

 

               It begins to snow again as they pull away. Victor grabs one of Yuri’s cold hands in his own and brings it to his lips, pressing a chaste kiss against the inside of Yuri’s wrist, enjoying the way Yuri’s eyelashes flutter at the gesture.

 

               The roar of a distant motorcycle eventually brings them back to earth and they are shivering hard enough by that point that the only thing they want is to go back and get warm.

 

               So, Victor and Yuri have kissed six times.

 

               Some of those times had even been in what could be described as public, but no one had witnessed any of them. Victor hadn’t told Chris. He was fairly certain Yuri hadn’t told Phichit.

 

               It’s not that Victor doesn’t want to tell. Quite the opposite. He wants to tell anyone who will stand still long enough to listen about his love for Yuri Katsuki. Wants to shout it at the retreating backs of those who can’t or won’t stay still. He wants to go up onto a roof somewhere and tell the whole campus about how soft Yuri’s lips are and how Victor’s heart skips a beat as he feels Yuri’s smile on top of his whether they want to hear it or not.

 

               But he doesn’t know how Yuri feels about that. Doesn’t want to broach the subject for fear that the kissing might stop.

 

               He wants to, but he doesn’t.

 

               And so they continue on as always.

 

~

 

               “We aren’t going to be gone long. Just three days. We’ll be meeting you at the airport to go to Russia together.”

 

               “Three of the worst days of my life!” Victor is watching Phichit pack his bags with a pout.

 

               “I don’t know if you’ve been made aware, but there is this wonderful invention I like to call a ‘cell phone’. It’s this little device that fits in your pocket and lets you talk to people even when they are nowhere near you.” Phichit doesn’t even pause in his packing as he speaks. “They’ve even made it so that you can video call the other person that way you can stare into his eyes like the giant sap you are even when he’s not physically with you.”

 

               “You know that’s not the same.” Victor flops down on his bed. He rolls over onto his stomach. Buries his face in his pillow. Hopes that maybe if he doesn’t see Phichit packing in preparation for spending the next three days in Thailand with Yuri that it won’t happen.

 

               He knows that it will, but sometimes it’s nice to pretend.

 

               “It’s not too late to come with us. My parents wouldn’t mind the extra person. We have plenty of space.” Phichit offers for the tenth time that day alone. Victor is sorely tempted, but he rolls onto his back again and shakes his head. What kind of message would that send? That he’s so clingy he literally cannot go three days without seeing Yuri?

 

               Even he can tell that can’t be healthy.

 

               But, oh, does he want to.

 

               “Don’t mind me. You know how I tend to be dramatic.” Victor waves off Phichit’s curious glance. “I just have to get it out of my system and then I’ll be fine.”

 

               “You’ve been getting this out of your system for the past four days.” Phichit doesn’t sound convinced. “You and Yuri have been dating, or whatever it is you’re calling it, for barely over a week now. You’re still in the honeymoon phase. You’re more melodramatic about it than most people, but I have to say missing him if he’s going away is normal enough.”

 

               Victor rolls over and makes a noncommittal noise into his blanket.

 

               “You really can come with us.” Phichit tries again. “I’ve already checked. There are still seats available and they aren’t too expensive.”

 

               It’s not the money that is stopping Victor. He has plenty of money. Or, more like his parents have plenty of money they let him use. It’s not the availability of seats either.

 

               It’s that little voice at the back of his mind that keeps whispering about how Yuri doesn’t kiss him in front of their friends. About how Yuri brushes off any inquiries about their relationship status. How even when their friends will joke and tease and call Yuri his boyfriend, the other man doesn’t rise to the bait. He never says anything in response.

 

               It’s Victor being suddenly more insecure than he has ever felt in his entire life.

 

               It’s also a stupid quote. A quote about absence making the heart grow fonder. Victor knows that no amount of distance is capable of making him grow any fonder. His heart couldn’t possibly be any more enthralled by Yuri.

 

               Does Yuri’s heart feel the same way?

 

               “It’s just a five and a half hour flight.” Phichit must take Victor’s silence as a sign that his resolve is wavering and pushes on. “Oh! Maybe Chris would want to come. Then we can have an even number and you won’t have to feel so guilty if you want to go off with Yuri to do whatever it is the two of you do when you wander off.”

 

               That… Is not a bad idea.

 

               Victor rolls that thought around for a moment and examines it from every angle. It could work. Chris is a wonderful friend and an even better distraction. Phichit did have a tendency to invite everyone within a five kilometer radius to whatever plans he was making. Surely Yuri would assume that was the case again. With enough planning, they could pull it off in a way that doesn’t make it seem like he’s stalking Yuri.

 

               “He wouldn’t think I was being a creepy stalker, right?” Victor would usually feel a lot more confident in how his partner would view his actions, but Yuri is unlike anyone he has ever pursued before.

 

               “I don’t think so.” Phichit zips up his suitcase with a flourish. “We can blame it on me if you want. Especially if Chris can come.”

 

               That had been exactly what Victor had been planning to do. It was nice that Phichit and he were on the same page.

 

               “Our flight leaves first thing in the morning.” Phichit chucks his suitcase onto the floor and bounces over to Victor’s side of the room, grabbing him by the forearms and hauling him to his feet. “If we’re going to do this, we should go see if Chris is even available first.”

 

               Victor goes willingly.

 

               He hopes Chris is open to this utterly insane spur of the moment plan.

 

~

 

               Chris is not in a good place when they find him in his room.

 

               Guang Hong meets them at the door on his way out of the room he’s currently sharing with Chris, a worried frown on his face and a tension in his body that sets Victor’s teeth on edge.

 

               When they ask him if Chris is in there, the frown intensifies.

 

               “He’s in there, but I think something’s wrong.” Guang Hong dithers there for a moment in the hall with the closed door at his back as though he isn’t sure he should say anything. “He got a phone call from home. I’m not sure exactly what happened since he was speaking French the whole time, but I don’t think whatever it was, was good… I was just going to get him some coffee in case that might help him perk up.”

 

               As they speak Victor feels his phone buzz in his pocket. He digs it out and sees a text from his best friend on the lock screen.

 

               ‘SOS. Please come quick.’

 

               “That does not bode well.” Phichit is biting his lip now. The three of them share a look dripping with concern.

 

               “Just… Text me once you know something, okay? I was going to meet Leo and Seung-Gil at a café to study this evening anyway.” Guang Hong moves out of their way. “If he needs anything, just ask. We’d be happy to come help if he wants us to.”

 

               “Thanks, Guang Hong. We will.” Victor waves as the Chinese boy walks off down the hall.

 

               He pauses for a moment, wondering if he should tell Phichit to leave as well. In the end, he chooses not to say anything. Victor might have been distracted with Yuri as of late, but he’s not blind and he can tell Chris and Phichit are friends. He figures if Chris doesn’t want the Thai man there, he’ll say something.

 

               Victor take a deep breath and knocks lightly on the door. He can hear Chris’ voice from the other side. It’s muffled so he can’t hear the words, but Victor is sure it’s an invitation to come in, so he does so, Phichit trailing behind him and shutting the door after they both clear the threshold.

 

               “You got here quickly.” Chris does not look good at all. He is wearing his glasses and his eyes are rimmed with red. He offers up a weak smile, though, and gestures for both of them to make themselves at home.

 

               Phichit and Victor pull the two desk chairs from their proper places and wheel them over to sit in front of where Chris is sitting on the bed with his arms wrapped around where he has his knees pulled up to his chest. At 183 centimeters, Chris is not a small man, but he looks like one now, curled in on himself and in obvious distress.

 

               “We were close by.” Victor explains. “What happened?”

 

               “Remember how a few weeks ago I told you Julien had run into an ex-boyfriend at the market?” Chris’ voice is raw and if the redness of his eyes hadn’t already given it away, Victor can tell he has been crying. He nods to show he remembers. “Apparently, I was right to worry about it. They’ve decided to get back together and give it another go. Julien just called to break up with me.”

 

               “Shit.” Victor feels a pang of empathy roll through him. “I can’t believe he did that.”

 

               “I can.” Chris rolls his shoulders in a rough approximation of a shrug. “We weren’t in the best place when I left. I could tell he wasn’t really comfortable with me being gone for a year. I just thought that I was just imagining things. Or, that we would be able to work it out. I never imagined he would pull something like this. He could have at least waited until I got back to Switzerland and break up with me face to face.”

 

               “Are you sure?” Phichit rests his forearms on his knees and leans forward. “It could be better to know now. That way you don’t spend the next month looking forward to seeing him, only to have him break your heart the second you step off the plane.”

 

               Chris lets out a broken laugh. “You’re right. Silver linings and all that.”

 

               “I’m quite often right. It still manages to surprise people every time, though.” Phichit winks. “I know it hurts now, but anyone who is willing to drop a major catch like you to run after an ex, must have more than a few screws loose.”

 

               “He doesn’t know what he’s giving up.” Victor asserts firmly to back up Phichit’s statement. “If he doesn’t want to be with you, then that’s his loss. It just means you are going to make someone else ridiculously happy, and that person will deserve you a lot more than Julien ever did. You know how he can be a major asshole.”

 

               “For what it’s worth, I’ve never met the guy and even I know Victor’s right. He definitely sounds like an ass.” Phichit leans back and offers up a genuine smile now. Victor is glad he decided to let the other man tag along. Victor always had been utter rubbish at comforting people. “I know this is poor timing, but why don’t you come to Thailand with Yuri and I? It might help you take your mind off things better than barricading yourself in here for the next three days.”

 

               “I wouldn’t want to bring you down with my sour mood.” Chris was about to go on before Phichit immediately waved off any further protest.

 

               “Nonsense. The change of scenery will do you good. I won’t take no for an answer.” Phichit turns to Victor now, his dark grey eyes sparkling with determination. “Victor, you’re coming, too. Get your phone out and book the tickets.”

 

               Victor does as he’s told. He put the tickets on his credit card, assuring Chris that it’s easier this way and that the Swiss man can transfer him the funds later.

 

               Phichit does most of the talking from there, distracting Chris with funny stories about his family and growing up in Thailand. The mood stays fairly light as they help Chris pack his things, going back to Victor and Phichit’s room once they are done to pack his stuff as well.

 

               Between the flurry of making the arrangements and trying to keep Chris’ mind off his misery, it’s almost one in the morning before they slide into their respective beds and go to sleep.

 

               It’s not until they are lugging their luggage down to the common area in the morning that anyone realizes they never bothered to bring Yuri into the loop.

 

~

 

               Yuri had not expected to see Victor and Chris in the common area with their bags packed and bundled up in anticipation of going out into the cold, March morning.

 

               “I feel like I missed something important here…”

 

               “[Oh, shit, Yuri. I knew I was forgetting something last night.]” Phichit looks up from where he is fiddling with a tag on one of his suitcases with a guilty expression on his face. “[I… Um… Kind of invited Chris and Victor to come with us last night. Is that okay?]”

 

               “[You know, you are the one that’s always going on about me not taking in strays… But, it’s your trip. You can invite whoever you want.]” Yuri notices Chris and Victor looking at them with a mixture of confusion and concern. Yuri switches to English. “Phichit says the two of you are coming with us?”

 

               Victor looks at Chris for a second, as though he is asking permission for something. The blonde nods and Victor turns his full attention back to Yuri.

 

               “Chris’ boyfriend called to break up with him last night.” Victor explains. “Phichit thought it might be fun if he could come with us. You know, to take his mind off things.”

 

               “Oh.” Yuri felt his stomach twist in a knot. He had no idea what to say, so he said the first thing that popped into his mind. “Oh, I’m sorry.”

 

               “It’s fine.” Chris didn’t sound like it was fine. Yuri had never really gone through a breakup before, though, so what did he know? “I didn’t mean to crash your trip.”

 

               “You didn’t crash anyone’s trip if you were invited.” Phichit was his usual ball of sunshine. Glossing over Yuri’s nerves and the tension hanging over the room as though he hadn’t even noticed it. “Come on, we need to get to the airport soon if we don’t want to miss our flight.”

 

               They catch a bus to the airport.

 

               Yuri feels awkward. That feeling rests over him like an extra layer on top of his skin. Itchy, unwanted, and distracting. Victor hasn’t said much, but he takes the seat next to Yuri on the bus, leaving about a meter of space between them.

 

               Yuri is struck by the conflicting urge to both move closer and further away at the same time. It’s not a pleasant feeling.

 

               He catches Victor’s blue gaze out of the corner of his eyes. Biting his lip, he squirms.

 

               There’s something he wants to say. Something he knows he needs to say, but the words don’t come.

 

               Victor is openly staring at him now.

 

               Yuri is vaguely aware of Chris and Phichit having a conversation from the pair of seats behind them. Chris still sounds out of it, more depressed than his usual relaxed and flirty attitude and Yuri feels a pang of guilt begin to burn in the center of his chest. He had been startled and half-asleep before, his anxiety and awkwardness getting the better of him yet again.

 

               He’d probably offended everyone with his lukewarm reaction. He would have to make a point to apologize as soon as he could untangle the knot of nerves at the base of his brain.

 

               “We should have told you. Texted you at least.” Yuri starts in his seat and turns, giving Victor his full attention for the first time that morning. “It all happened so fast, but that’s no excuse.”

 

               “You’d think I would be used to it by now with Phichit being my best friend and all.” Yuri was glad for the icebreaker. Now that his brain was more awake, the creep of uncertainty was receding and he was beginning to feel more like his normal self. “I really am sorry to hear about Chris. That doesn’t seem like fair way to break things off at all.”

 

               “No, it wasn’t fair.” Victor slides closer. An infinitesimal amount, as though he is worried Yuri might pull back if he moves too quickly. Yuri returns the gesture. Goes one step further and puts a hand on Victor’s thigh, nervous about showing affection in front of Chris in case it upsets where the other man’s emotions are sure to still be raw. “He has us to help get him through it, though. Between the three of us, we’ll have him feeling better in no time.”

 

               Yuri smiles as Victor places a hand over where Yuri’s is still resting on his thigh.

 

               “I’m glad you’re coming. I was going to miss you.”

 

               Yuri was practically whispering, but he had finally gotten a grip on what he needed to say. He felt more than heard Victor’s long exhale and it was almost like a switch had been flipped and all the tension that was hanging thick between them disappeared like it had been as though it had never been more concrete than mist, low hanging and heavy and burned away at the first strong rays of the sun.

 

               Victor’s smile was like that sunbeam. It cast warmth between them and the last dregs of Yuri’s malaise was burnt away in front of it.

 

               “I wish it was under better circumstances, but I’m glad, too.” Victor had moved across the last remaining centimeters so that they were pressed together from shoulder to hips. Yuri valiantly attempted to suppress a shudder at the feeling. “I was going to miss you, too.”

 

               Victor threads their fingers together and Yuri rests a head on his shoulder.

 

               This was definitely not what he had planned. None of what had happened so far this year was what he had planned. He never had done well when things didn’t go as designed and so Yuri waited, fully expecting to feel the cold sting of dread building up within him.

 

               It never came.

 

               He was sure it would sooner or later, but for now there was nothing but the bright feeling Victor always managed to bring to the forefront whenever he was near.

 

               There was more he wanted to say. He couldn’t find the right phrasing, but the words were there just under the surface. Before he could gather them up and sort them into something meaningful, Phichit had lunged over their heads, phone in hand.

 

               “Bus to the airport selfie!”

 

               Yuri was sure he looked atrocious, mouth hanging open slightly, eyes wide and hair most likely mussed from where he’d run his fingers through it that morning in vain attempt to get it to behave.

 

               For once he didn’t care.

 

               Victor was still holding his hand, and that was the only thing that mattered.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> We're finally in Russia! You know what that means! Makkachin! Victor's parents! More shenanigans!
> 
> As always, my eternal thanks for all your kudos and comments! They mean the world to me. :)

April – Russia

 

               They have a good time in Thailand.

 

               Phichit’s family is hospitable and welcoming. They do not have as much space as Phichit promised them, but Victor doesn’t mind sharing with Chris. It’s probably for the best in any case. It makes it easier for them to have those post-breakup philosophical middle of the night conversations that are necessary for helping a friend move on.

 

               They have a good time, but Victor gets nowhere new with Yuri.

 

               It is to be expected, he supposed. It would have been terribly rude and maybe even hurtful to flaunt their burgeoning relationship in front of Chris when the Swiss man’s own relationship had just gone down in flames. Chris’ happiness meant a lot to Victor. Giving up time with Yuri had been a sacrifice well worth making.

 

               But they weren’t in Thailand anymore.

 

               They were in Russia now. St. Petersburg. Victor’s territory.

 

               It’s 13 degrees Celsius, downright balmy for northern Russia in April, but everyone is shivering as they huddle together on the curb in front of Pulkovo airport waiting for the vans to arrive to take them to Herzen University. Victor’s school. Yurio’s school, too, he supposes. He’d never actually bothered to ask.

 

               He glances down at the top of Yuri’s head as the other boy is pressed against Victor’s side, using him as a windbreak against the strong breeze. He remembered the last time he’d been on this curb. Pulling his bags out of the back of his parent’s car and hugging them goodbye as he left for the first leg of his journey.

 

               It had been a bittersweet feeling that time. Leaving behind everything he’d ever known and heading off into the wide world with only Chris waiting for him on the other side. So much could have gone wrong. He’d been nervous and excited. Sad and happy at the same time.

 

               Now he was back and he felt nothing other than joy.

 

               When he left he hadn’t had Yuri. Hadn’t known the other man even existed. His entire viewpoint of the world around him had changed, shifted into a new, brilliant perspective now that he had Yuri in his life.

 

               He tightened his grip around Yuri’s waist. He couldn’t wait to show him around.

 

               “ **When are we going to go to a warm country?** ” Yurio stomped his feet and rubbed his gloved hands together. “ **If I wanted to freeze my balls off all year I would have just stayed here in the first place.** ”

 

               “ **Switzerland next month should be warmer, and then we’re in Spain for June, Italy for July and the UK for August.** ” Otabeck answers. Yurio’s question had been in Russian and out of the two others in the group that spoke the language, Otabeck was the one currently not preoccupied by an armful of human perfection. “ **They should be warm enough**.”

 

               Yurio grunts in acknowledgement, but chooses to stuff his hands in his pockets and glare at the concrete instead of saying anything further.

 

               “What was that about?” Yuri has his head turned upwards now. Victor reaches out with a gloved finger and tucks a wayward strand of dark hair behind Yuri’s ear.

 

               “He’s just bitching about being cold. Same as he has everywhere else we’ve been.” Victor slips the hand currently resting on Yuri’s waist up under the other man’s heavy jacket and places it on the small of his back. “I can’t understand what he’s complaining about this time. This is practically spring weather today.”

 

               “Shit, if this is spring, I don’t want to know what winter is like.” Phichit was also bundled up excessively. In fact, between the thick grey scarf and hat and the black facemask the Thai man always wore when they traveled, all Victor could see of his face was tanned skin pinched tight at the corner of his grey eyes. “We should have just stayed in Bangkok.”

 

               Victor doesn’t disagree. It had been sunny and around 26 degrees Celsius there. The tropical climate had been a welcome break from grey skies, snow, and the ever-present chill of winter that had been plaguing them through their first leg of the trip.

 

               “While I never have been one to let a little cold get in my way, I have to say that Phichit posits an excellent idea.” Chris’ mood had certainly improved over their mini-holiday and Victor was glad to see it. Seeing Chris in the throes of melancholy despair had been more than a little concerning. “What are the odds of us being able to catch a flight from here back to Thailand?”

 

               Victor was about to suggest they go find out when the vans pulled around the bend at long last. Oh well, there was always time for a return trip in the future. Maybe after the year ended. Victor, Yuri, Chris, and Phichit were all in their last year at university after all. They would have plenty of spare time after the year was up and they graduated to take trips.

 

               The vans were ancient and the heater intermittent at best, completely busted at worse. Victor was actually thankful for this as it meant Yuri continued to remain glued to his side, ostensibly for warmth, but Victor was sure that there was more to it than that.

 

               Unfortunately, they had to separate to unload their things once they reached the building that housed the dorm rooms they would be staying at for the next month. All forty students piled wearily into the common area to await their room assignments. It seemed as though the constant travel was starting to get to even the most cheerful among them.

 

               Victor was rooming with the Czech student, Emil. Yuri would be with Otabeck.

 

               It took about an hour for everyone to settle in. Emil was friendly enough, cheerful and easygoing. Victor was sure it wouldn’t be too bad sharing space with him for a month, especially since Victor was planning to spend more time at his flat than the dorm. They exchanged bland pleasantries before Victor took his leave, heading off to try and find Yuri again. It wasn’t too late and there was a restaurant not too far away that had the best stroganoff he’d ever tasted. He’d been nursing the thought of seeing if Yuri would like to try it before they settled in for the night.

 

               He had almost made it down the hall when a loud crash from a room about midway down caught his attention.

 

               “If you sing that song one more fucking time I am going to rip out your vocal chords and feed them to you!”

 

               Ah, that sounded like Yurio.

 

               On the one hand, Yurio was more or less an adult and not Victor’s responsibility.

 

               On the other hand, Yurio could be difficult to handle and he would be insufferable if he got into a fight with his new roommate on the first day. Victor vividly remembered Korea and how Yurio spent more time in Victor and Otabeck’s room than his own after he and JJ had gotten into a screaming match on the third day there.

 

               The last thing he wanted was to have to go through that again.

 

               The door had been left ajar and Victor swung it open without any preamble, peering in to find Yurio standing in its center and glaring daggers at where Phichit was artfully arranging some posters and photographs on the wall behind his bed. He was humming and completely ignoring the incensed blonde.

 

               “Victor, what the fuck? Don’t you know how to knock?” Victor thought that was fairly hypocritical of the other Russian as Yurio had a consistent habit of bursting into rooms without knocking, but he let it go.

 

               “I could hear your yelling from all the way down the hall. I wanted to make sure you weren’t actually killing anyone this time.” Victor relaxed now, leaning against the doorframe.

 

               “Thanks for the concern, but I’m confident he won’t kill me.” Phichit turned away from his rapidly expanding collage and sent Victor a look that was intended to reassure. “Yell at me? Yes. Annoy the fuck out of me? Definitely. Kill me? Not likely.”

 

               “I’ll show you what’s likely or not.” Yurio kicked out at the nearest bed frame, Phichit wobbling a bit on his knees as the impact shifted the bed underneath him. “Fuck it. I’m going to find something to eat.”

 

               Without another word, Yurio stalks out of the room, bumping against Victor with his shoulder harder than necessary as he goes.

 

               “I suppose that was my fault.” Phichit pulled back and ran a critical gaze over his work in progress before slipping off the bed and stretching. “I couldn’t help it though. It’s hilarious to watch him turn red and sputter in Russian.”

 

               “Agreed.” Victor returned to his position of leaning against the doorframe. “He’ll go find Otabeck, complain for a bit, and then be over it before he goes to bed.”

 

               “Phichit, Victor, is everything alright? I heard shouting…” Victor can feel his face light up as he turns to find Yuri standing in the hallway, hovering nervously.

 

               “Yuri!” Victor moves before he can stop and analyze his actions. He grabs Yuri and pulls him off his feet, spinning him around in the middle of the drab hallway. Yuri lets out a surprised shout that is immediately followed by an adorable giggle that sounds like music to Victor’s ears.

 

               He is vaguely aware of Phichit standing the doorway with his phone trained on them. The lack of shutter sound must mean he’s taking a video. Victor can’t wait to see it.

 

               “Okay, okay. You can put me down now.” Yuri pats him gently on the head and Victor releases him, still smiling widely. A month ago, Victor making such a move would have sent Yuri scuttling away from him as fast as possible. Now, it just causes him to blush and smile gently.

 

               Victor’s is pretty sure his heart is about to burst.

 

               “Are you hungry? There’s this place I know. It’s not too far. They have amazing Russian food.” Victor folds his hands together and tilts his head as he pouts.

 

               “Let me get my coat.” Victor is now fully convinced Yuri’s smile is the reason for the polar ice caps melting. It should be illegal to have a smile that radiates that much pure warmth and affection.

 

               Yuri turns to go, then must catch sight of Phichit over Victor’s shoulder.

 

               “Oh, hi, Phichit!” He waves and Victor turns to wave as well.

 

               “Do you want to come, too?” Victor had originally been intending on asking only Yuri, but he likes Phichit also. Phichit had been kind the past three days they’d been in Thailand. Victor owed him. “I can go find Chris. He might like the company.”

 

               “I wouldn’t want to intrude.” Phichit shot a pointed look down the hall at where Yuri had just disappeared into a room at the far end.

 

               “Nonsense.” Victor waved off Phichit’s concern. Yuri had looked tired and Victor was feeling the pull of another long day spent in airports. It might help the flow of conversation to have more people. “I’ll grab Chris. It’s my turn to put on the tour guide hat.”

 

~

 

               They arrived in Russia on a Wednesday.

 

               On Friday Victor gets a phone call from his parents.

 

               He supposes that’s to be expected. They worked during the week and Victor hadn’t really communicated with them outside of a brief text conversation in order to give them a head’s up about the charges for the last minute flight to Thailand. It wasn’t like he had thought to call them either.

 

               The conversation is a short one. Less awkward than Victor had expected. Victor agrees to make the trip across town to see them the next day. He agrees to speak with the dean in order to make arrangements to spend some time at his own flat so he can bring Makkachin back with him for the month.

 

               Before they hang up, he’s struck with a thought.

 

               “Mama?”

 

               “Yes, my dear?” Victor’s mother has a soft voice, but it is strong and firm. The familiarity allows him to relax.

 

               “Would you mind if I brought a friend with me?”

 

               There is a pause. He waits it out.

 

               “I don’t see why not. I’ll ask your father and let you know.”

 

               “Thank you, Mama.”

 

               Now he just hoped Yuri would say ‘yes’.

 

~

 

               “I feel like you should be more excited about this.” Phichit and Yuri were seated across from each other on Phichit’s bed. “He’s already met your parents, after all. This should be a piece of cake.”

 

               “When he met my parents we were just friends!” Yuri is quick to protest. He still can’t quite wrap his head around the fact that after dinner Victor had pulled him aside and asked if he would want to accompany him the next day to retrieve his dog from his family. Still can’t quite believe his traitorous mouth had agreed to it before his brain could stop it. “Now we’re…. We’re more than friends. It’s completely different.”

 

               “Damn. I totally thought you were about to use the ‘boyfriend’ word.” Phichit sighs. “I would have owed Chris twenty euros.”

 

               “Are you betting on us?”

 

               “One crisis at a time.” Phichit is quick to try and redirect his attention. Yuri allows the change in subject, glaring at his friend to make sure he understands they will be coming back to that conversation sooner or later. “You can always back out if you want, I’m sure Victor would understand.”

 

               That is exactly the problem. Victor would understand. He always understood when Yuri withdrew from him. Despite his outward appearance of impulsive eagerness, Victor had a seemingly infinite well of patience where Yuri was concerned.

 

               That didn’t mean Yuri felt as though it was right to keep pushing him away every time a wisp of insecurity crossed his mind.

 

               “I don’t want to back out… I mean, I do, but I don’t.” Yuri chews on his lip as he wavers. “I’m not sure what it is I want to do.”

 

               “I know what you mean.” Phichit comes to his rescue. “Let’s look at it this way: On a scale of one to full blown panic attack, how uncomfortable does the thought of meeting Victor’s parents make you?”

 

               Yuri mulled it over for a moment. Looked at his feelings from every angle. There was fear and apprehension. That was to be expected. The cold bite of nerves running up his spine at the thought that even if he did go, he was bound to embarrass himself in some way. There was something else there as well, hiding just under the surface.

 

               Excitement. Pride that Victor would have thought of him. That Victor would have wanted to take him to meet his family. Happiness as being able to get a sneak peek into the other man’s life. That he had been _invited_ to take that look.

 

               “About a four to be honest.” He answers Phichit’s question. “Enough to be edgy, but not enough that I can’t breathe or think.”

 

               “That’s good. A four is good.” Phichit smiles encouragingly. “We can work with a four.”

 

               “We can?”

 

               “Yes, we can.” Phichit sounds determined now, and Yuri lets his friend’s confidence act as a buoy for his own. “I think we both know your anxiety is never going to go away, but when you are with Victor it looks to me like you are managing it a lot better. And by that, I mean when you don’t actively run away from Victor and let him comfort you.”

 

               “That happened one time. Are you ever going to let me live it down?” Yuri knew the answer to that question so he didn’t wait for Phichit to respond. “I can do this. I can do this.”

 

               “They’re going to love you Everyone loves you. Even the people you are convinced don’t.” Phichit squeezes Yuri’s knee. “I’ll have my phone on me the whole day. If you need to be bailed out, I can have an imaginary crisis.”

 

               “Thank, Phichit. For everything.”

 

               “Not a problem at all. That’s what friends are for!”

 

~

 

               If he was being completely honest with himself, he had been expecting Yuri to politely decline his invitation to accompany him on his mission to recollect his dog. At bare minimum, he had anticipated having to spend some time convincing Yuri that it wouldn’t be a bother and that Victor really and truly wanted him to be there.

 

               He had not expected Yuri would just nod and agree as though it was the most natural thing in the world.

 

               Every time he thought he knew Yuri, the other man had to say or do something that turned Victor’s entire perception of him on its head.

 

               As soon as they had met in front of the dorm Saturday morning, Victor had itched to ask Yuri if he was sure. To make sure that Yuri wasn’t going along with this because he was worried Victor would have been upset if he refused.

 

               “Are you sure you want me to come with you? You haven't seen your parents since January. If you want to spend time with them alone, I don’t mind. There’s always time for me to meet them later.” For once it looked like Yuri was the one to comfort him as Victor nerves were making him more fidgety than usual as they made the short walk to the bus stop. “You don’t have to put yourself out on my account.”

 

               “Do you want to come?” Victor asks as they wait for the bus. It is colder today and Yuri is huddled under too many layers for Victor to see his face properly.

 

               “Yes, I want to come.” Yuri sounds firm. Resolved. Excited?

 

               Victor can only hope he’s excited.

 

               “If you change your mind…” Victor doesn’t want to say it. They had discussed Yuri’s anxiety once before, but it was a subject the both of them tended to avoid. This felt a little too close to bringing it up for comfort.

 

               “I have Phichit on standby ready to have an imaginary emergency.” Yuri explains, putting Victor’s mind at ease. “I don’t expect to need it. I trust you, Victor. I trust you wouldn’t think to ask me to go anywhere or do anything if there was any real chance I wouldn’t like it. I want to meet your family. If we’re… If we’re going to keep being close… It just… It’s important to you. I can tell.”

 

               “You’re important to me, too.” Victor holds his arms out and almost melts into the ground when Yuri steps into them and allows himself to be wrapped into a firm hug. “Can I tell you a secret?”

 

               “Of course.” Yuri pulls back just enough so he can look up into Victor’s eyes. Victor searches the other man’s face for any sign of hesitation, but he finds none.

 

               “I’m not exactly close to my parents. I think ‘polite but distant’ would be the best term for our relationship. They’re busy, I’m busy. I leave them alone for the most part, and they keep me funded.” Victor shuffles a bit in Yuri’s loose grasp as he tries to hold onto the words he wants to say. “They never prepared to have a kid, so when I happened it kind of took them by surprise I guess. It’s gotten better now that I’m older, but sometimes it’s like they don’t exactly know what to do with me still.”

 

               “They tend to be infinitely more cheerful when we’re not alone together, though.”

 

               Yuri is quiet for a long moment. Victor waits. He hopes he hasn’t gone too far, but Yuri deserved to know what he was walking into.

 

               “Thank you for telling me that.” Yuri sounds stunned but pleased, as though Victor had just given him a treasure instead of a burden.

 

               “You still want to go?”

 

               “I still want to go.”

 

               Victor takes a deep breath, the cold air settling in his lungs and helping to clear out the tension that had been pulling on the space between his shoulder blades. Before they can say anything further the loud rumble of the bus arriving stops them.

 

               They pile on, tucking themselves away into the back corner for the hour and a half trip to the outskirts of the city where his parents live.

 

~

 

               Victor was now completely convinced Yuri could charm the devil himself if given half the chance as it didn’t take long at all for him to have both of Victor’s parents firmly wrapped around his finger.

 

               There had been a brief moment of awkwardness when they had first arrived on his parent’s doorstep when his mother had been the one to answer their knock.

 

               Irina Nikiforova was beautiful. Victor had gotten his silver hair and stunning blue eyes from her. Tall and thin, and a model long before Victor had ever come into the picture, age had not quite caught up to her yet.

 

               She had opened the door with a polite smile, but her eyes lit up as Yuri introduced himself with a faint flush and a bow. She had ushered them in, exchanging pleasantries with them both as she led the way to the sitting room where Victor’s father waited with his nose buried in a sheaf of papers.

 

               “Maxim. Vitya is here.” Irina chirped cheerfully as her husband put his work down on the table next to him. He was older than his wife by a few years and was shorter, with dark hair that was streaked with iron grey and kind, blue eyes just like his wife’s.

 

               “Vitya.” He inclined his head towards his son before turning the full weight of his piercing gaze on Yuri. “And you are?”

 

               “Yuri. Yuri Katsuki.” Yuri bows again. Victor reaches out subconsciously and takes one of Yuri’s hands in his. He’s not sure which of them the gesture was meant to comfort, but he can’t suppress a wince as both of his parents instantly notice. “I’m… I’m Victor’s….”

 

               Victor thinks he knows what is coming next, braces himself to hear Yuri refer to them as friends again like he always does.

 

               “Boyfriend.”

 

               His mother claps her hands together and begins to chatter away at Yuri in a mixture of English and Russian while Victor’s father slaps him on the back, announcing loudly that this calls for a drink.

 

               It takes a moment for Victor to reboot his brain.

 

               By the time he manages to regain control of all his faculties, he finds himself in the kitchen with his mother, assisting her with making tea and sandwiches to take out onto the enclosed back porch where Yuri and Maxim are sharing a drink and discussing something business related.

 

               They are engrossed in their discussion, Victor’s poodle at Yuri’s feet with a curly head resting in his lap. Yuri pets him idly as he laughs at something Victor’s father has said. Victor couldn’t contain the pleased grin that stretches across his lips at the picture they make even if he wanted to.

 

               “ **I like him.** ” Irina has placed the kettle on the stove and is now looking at Victor with something close to pride reflecting on her face. “ **Much more than some of those other boys you’ve told us about. Where have you been hiding him?** ”

 

               “ **I haven’t been hiding him. We just met when I was in Japan**.” Victor busies himself with chopping up cucumbers for the sandwiches. “ **I’m sure I’ve mentioned him a few times when we’ve spoken over the phone.** ”

 

               “ **You never said the two of you were together, though.** ” Irina takes out four mugs and places them on a tray, her movements easy and graceful. Maybe it’s because he’s been gone for so long. Maybe it’s because he’s finally brought someone home with him. Whatever it is, the atmosphere is calm. Almost homey. “ **Your father likes him, too. I can tell.** ”

 

               “ **Papa would like anyone who’ll listen to his boring business talk.** ”

 

               “ **Boring business talk? Ah, changing your mind about coming to work for him when you graduate again?** ” She is now sorting through a box of tea bags, placing one in each mug while before replacing the box back in its proper place in a drawer.

 

               “ **Not at all. I like marketing. But he never wants to go over marketing strategies. It’s all investments.** ” Victor is quick to reassure his mother. “ **Investments bore me and Papa can go on and on about them for hours.** ”

 

               Irina laughs at this. “ **They don’t seem to bore your boyfriend.** ”

 

               There is that word again. Boyfriend. It makes Victor feel light headed every time he hears it.

 

               “ **Ah, well, he has a head for numbers. It’s one of the things I like about him.** ” Victor finishes cutting up cucumbers and places the knife in the sink to soak. His mother takes over from there, assembling the sandwiches as Victor removes the now shrieking kettle from the stove and pours hot water into the mugs. “ **One of many things, actually.** ”

 

               “ **Hold onto him. He is one of the good ones.** ” His mother winks at him as she finishes arranging the completed sandwiches on a plate. “ **A mother knows these things.** ”

 

               “ **Trust me, Mama. I intend to.** ”

 

~

 

               “So, you’re my boyfriend now, are you?” They were on the bus back to campus, Makkachin curled up on the seat next to Victor. Yuri squeezed in against his other side.

 

               “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that without discussing it with you first. I may have panicked a bit.” Yuri is staring at his feet now. “I’ve probably put you in a difficult spot with them now.”

 

               “You’ve only put me in a difficult spot with them if you didn’t mean it.” Victor runs a hand through Makkachin’s fur. It felt good to have his dog back and Makkachin and Yuri had hit it off splendidly. Like they were old friends. “You did mean it, right? You weren’t just saying that because you thought it’s what I wanted to hear?”

 

               Yuri turns red again, but he reaches out to grab the hand Victor is not currently using to pet his dog.

 

               “I… I meant it.” Yuri buried his face in Victor’s shoulder. Victor places a soft kiss on the top of his head. “I would like to… I mean, if you want to.”

 

               “Do you want to be my boyfriend?”

 

               Victor almost doesn’t hear him as Yuri’s words are said into his jacket. It takes him about ten seconds for his brain to sort out the English syllables into something meaningful and another twenty to discern exactly what he is being asked. The whole time he does this, Yuri is clutching his hand as though he is worried Victor might disappear if he doesn’t and keeping his forehead firmly pressed against Victor’s shoulder.

 

               “Yes.”

 

               When Victor had thought about how he wanted to handle this moment, he had assumed that he would have this whole big, flowery speech ready to go. He had imagined candlelight, roses, and moonbeams.

 

               Instead he’d gotten the back of a smelly, Russian bus. A dog trying to snuggle into his lap and Yuri doing the same to his left shoulder. No romantic speeches. No candlelight. The harsh glare of the setting sun was in his eyes, making him squint.

 

               He finds he wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

 

               Yuri looks up at him, then. His cheeks are red and there is no mistaking the joy in those brown eyes that Victor loves so much. Yuri tilts his chin up and Victor closes the gap between their lips with a happy sigh.

 

               As they part Victor pulls Yuri close to him so that the other man is pressed against his chest, dark hair tickling the underside of his chin.

 

               “I guess this means Phichit owes Chris twenty euros after all.”

 

               “What?”

 

~

 

               “How did it go with the parents?”

 

               Victor and Yuri had gone back to Victor’s flat since the dorm did not allow pets. Chris, Phichit, and Yurio had met them there about an hour previous. Now it was down to just Chris and Victor as the others had left to accompany Yurio on a mission to pick up piroshkies from a bakery about twenty minutes away that Yurio swore were the best in the whole country.

 

               “I think they’re ready to sign adoption papers on him tomorrow.” Victor was practically preening with pride. All things considered, it had been a pleasant visit. Much more pleasant that he had anticipated.

 

               “It went that well, huh?”

 

               “I’m pretty sure I heard Papa offering him my job and when Mama found out he could dance, she just about fell out of her chair trying to hug him from across the table.”

 

               “Sounds like they’re going to propose before you can.” Chris laughs.

 

               “At the rate we’re going, _Yuri_ is going to be the one to propose.” Victor groaned and wrapped his arms tighter around where Makkachin was sprawled in his lap. “How does he always manage to see me coming in time to beat me to the punch?”

 

               “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

 

               “Hm?” Victor glances over curiously, forgetting for a moment that he hadn’t told anyone what had happened on the bus ride back. “Oh… Right. I forgot you didn’t know. Phichit owes you twenty euros, by the way.”

 

               “Does that mean what I think it means?” Chris was sitting bolt upright now, staring at Victor triumphantly. “You’re together-together, now? Officially?”

 

               “Yes. He used the ‘b’ word and everything.” Victor still couldn’t believe that had happened. It felt like a dream more than anything else. A dream he desperately never wanted to wake from. “Walked right into my old home and introduced himself to my parents as my boyfriend with only minimal amounts of stuttering. I’m pretty sure my brain exploded.”

 

               “Wow. You’re boyfriends now. Congratulations.” Chris sounded truly happy about Victor’s news. “Have you actually kissed him yet?”

 

               “Yes.” Victor couldn’t stop the light flush he could feel creeping across his cheeks. “That happened a few weeks ago. Before we left for Thailand. I was going to tell you but…”

 

               “But I had an emotional crisis and you didn’t want to rub your good fortune in my face. I get it.” There was a flash of something still tender and raw on Chris’ face before it was gone and he was back to normal almost before Victor could be sure he had seen anything in the first place. “Shit, I wish you had told me, though. I could have won fifty euros instead of a measly twenty if you became ‘official’ before we left China. I would have helped you go for it.”

 

               “It all happened so fast. Yuri kissed me and then they were going to go to Thailand. Then _we_ were going to Thailand, and you were so upset by what happened with Julien. I don’t think there would have been time for that even if I had told you.”

 

               “I still can’t believe Yuri keeps one-upping you in the romance department. What happened to heartbreaker Nikiforov?” Victor knew Chris was poking fun at him. It was so good to see Chris back in better spirits he didn’t even mind. “Love has ruined you, my friend! It’s turned your brain to mush.”

 

               “Hey! Don’t count me out yet! We’re in my territory now.” It was true. There were plenty of places he knew where he could take Yuri and make the next move. As thrilling as it was to have Yuri taking the initiative more and more these past few weeks, Victor felt it was high time to turn the tables. He had promised Yuri he was going to sweep him off his feet after all. What better time than now? “I have plenty of ideas for how to get him back for always making the first move.”

 

               “Do I need to hide your credit card again?”

 

               “No.” Victor frowned. Chris held up his hands in surrender. “I’m not going to go overboard. I’m in love, not stupid.”

 

               “I thought those two things were mutually exclusive.” Chris pointed out.

 

               “Fair point.”

 

               Victor hesitated. Chris might have a point. It would be easy for Victor let his own enthusiasm get in the way and end up pushing Yuri away instead of pulling him closer. Yuri was like no one he had ever been with before. Confident one moment, and withdrawing into his thick shell the next. They had made a lot of progress and Victor was getting better and better every day at predicting his moods, even if he was still utter crap at predicting his actions.

 

               He just couldn’t shake the feeling that all his progress would be gone in a puff of smoke if he stepped out in just the wrong way.

 

               The Swiss man next to him sighed, catching Victor’s attention again.

 

               “He’s not made of glass, you know. He won’t break if you push him a bit.” Sometimes Victor wondered if Chris could read his mind. “I wouldn’t exactly go as far as a brass band and a flash mob proposal, but you can probably get away with a grander romantic gesture by now.”

 

               “What if I do go too far? What if we’re not on the same page and I try to push him into a place he’s not ready for yet?”

 

               “That’s what healthy, open communication is for.” Chris was quick to attempt to bolster Victor’s suddenly flagging mood. Victor appreciated it. He didn’t know what he would have done if Chris hadn’t been there for him so far. Most likely he would have returned back home with his tail tucked firmly between his legs after the first week. “Look at it from your side of things. When he introduced himself as your boyfriend to your parents, you felt shocked?”

 

               “I think ‘shocked’ might be understating it a tad, but, yes.”

 

               “Did he ignore your less than favorable reaction?” Chris pressed.

 

               “No.” Victor hadn’t been able to see what his face had looked like when Yuri had dropped the boyfriend bomb, but he knew it hadn’t been his best look. Yuri had to have seen how surprised he’d been. “He apologized to me, on the way back here.”

 

               “And then you two had a rational conversation, I’m assuming. Like the two grown ass adults you are.”

 

               “We did.” Victor confirmed.

 

               “See? You were uncomfortable. He sensed it. You talked about it. Everything turned out great.” Chris paused for a split second before amending his statement. “Well, everything turned out great for you. I lost out on an additional thirty euros because you took forever to get your shit together.”

 

               “Forgive me. I will work harder at getting my shit together the next time you want to bet on my personal life.”

 

               “Thank you. Apology accepted.”

 

               Before Victor could say anything further he heard the front door opening and the telltale sounds of his friends arriving.

 

               Makkachin bolted off his lap to greet the visitors and sniffed the paper bags they were carrying in the hopes that something might have been bought with him in mind. Victor followed his dog’s example, leaping across the room.

 

               “Yuri!”

 

               “V-Victor! Wait, I’m carrying things!”

 

               Victor didn’t wait. He threw his arms around Yuri’s neck and bent down, placing a solid kiss on the other’s man’s lips before pulling away and dragging him to the kitchen.

 

               Their friends whooped and whistled in the background, but Victor didn’t care. Chris had been right. It was time to stop treating their relationship like it was made of spun glass.

 

               Yuri wasn’t going to know what hit him.

 


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Do you love domestic Victuri? If you do, then boy do I have a chapter for you! Fluffy domestic Victuri for everyone!

               April – Russia

 

               Being in Russia was strange.

 

               Well, that wasn’t really the full truth, if Victor wanted to be honest with himself. He had been in Russia for most of his life. Simply being there was actually quite normal.

 

               It was being in Russia with Yuri that was the strange thing.

 

               Since Yurio had his regular dance instructor back for the time being, they didn’t have their usual time slot with him to distract them. That left a lot of spare time. Time Victor put to good use taking Makkachin for walks while showing Yuri all the nooks and crannies he’d used to hang out at before he’d left.

 

               Everything looked the same on the outside. He’d only been gone for three months after all. It looked the same, but it didn’t feel the same, as though viewing everything through Yuri’s eyes added an extra layer to the same old worn out tracks.

 

               They got mint tea at Victor’s favorite café. Victor almost died on the spot as Yuri ordered his own drink without Victor’s help. The other man’s Russian was stilted and kind of difficult to understand under his Japanese accent, but Victor felt a painful twist in his heart none the less.

 

               They took Makkachin to the park down the road where Victor would spend his weekends studying and they set up shop at the worn out picnic table there. Makkachin found a tennis ball and Yuri would periodically reach down and grab it, throwing it across the grass as they watched the poodle bound after it, tongue lolling out of his mouth and a spring in his step. Victor couldn’t help but stare at the place in front of him. A seat that had always been empty, but that now inexplicably contained a beautiful Japanese man who was cooing to his dog in his horribly accented Russian, throwing tennis balls like they’d been doing this all their lives. His heart twists again.

 

               They ordered take out one night and spent the whole evening on Victor’s couch, watching artsy foreign films on Netflix. The kind with subtitles you can’t turn off even when you knew the language and plenty of fuzzy lighting and sweeping camera angles. Yuri does the thing where he laughs with his whole body and snorts as Victor re-enacts one of the more serious scenes in his usual overdramatic fashion. Yuri falls asleep first, curled up in Victor’s arms on his couch with Makkachin keeping their feet warm. This time the feeling in his heart is less of a twist and more of a slow squeeze as he carefully removes Yuri’s glasses and sets them on the end table.

 

               They meet his parents for dinner on their second weekend there. It is a fancy place, the kind where you have to wear a shirt and tie to even get in the door. Yuri leaves his glasses tucked in his pocket and slicks his hair back again. Since he can’t read the menu without them, he lets Victor order. Halfway through dinner, Victor excuses himself to use the toilet. When he returns, he catches sight of Yuri from across the room. Yuri and his father are laughing at something his mother has said, Maxim’s booming voice drowning out Yuri’s more reserved reaction. He watches his father clap Yuri on the back before shaking his hand. It’s the perfect picture.

 

               This time Victor’s heart stops completely.

 

               Victor also notices the little things in those first two weeks. Things that are out of place, but don’t feel that way. Like how there’s a small duffle bag in the corner of his bedroom that contains some of Yuri’s clothing. Travel sized bottles of shampoo and body wash in Victor’s shower that do not belong to him and smell very much like Yuri. There is a book sitting on his breakfast room table that is written in kanji. Two mugs sit soaking in the sink.

 

               How empty his flat feels on the nights when Yuri stays at the dorm and not on Victor’s couch.

 

               “You two are downright _domestic_ these days.”

 

               Chris was at Victor’s flat now. As well as Phichit. The others were on their way. Midterms were rapidly approaching and while the library did eventually close, Victor’s flat did not. Typically everyone did eventually end up going back to campus when even energy drinks weren’t enough to keep their eyes open. Sometimes Yuri did not, hence the duffle full of clothes that Chris was now eying with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

 

               ”Please tell me you’re being safe at least.” Phichit is perched in Victor’s lone armchair, bare feet pulled up under him and his computer open on his lap.

 

               “Yuri sleeps on the couch when he stays.” Victor doesn’t add that there are times when he very much wishes there was an altogether different sleeping arrangement. By this point, he is sure it goes without saying.

 

               However, this time Yuri isn’t the only one who is hesitant. Victor is holding back, too. Why, he can’t even begin to decipher. Everything just feels so important. _Yuri_ feels so important. For the first time in his life, Victor doesn’t want to rush headlong into the next step. He wants to savor every second of buildup.

 

               “I think we all know that beds are not the only place where shenanigans happen.” Chris is now completely back to normal. All overt flirting and chipper attitude. “Walls, floors, tables, showers… Couches… Any and all will do in a pinch if the mood is right.”

 

               “You should still be safe, even against a wall.” Phichit is clearly not embarrassed by anything and Victor has to turn and walk back to the kitchen to hide his blush. Shit, he’s acting like a schoolgirl with her first crush. “Right, Chris?”

 

               “Yes, definitely. Be safe anywhere, of course, but most certainly against walls.”

 

               “Keep talking and you’re both going to find yourselves out on your asses.” There is no true force behind Victor’s words and he knows his friends can sense it.

 

               “We’ll stop talking.” Victor turns as he clears the counter that separates the living room from the kitchen. Phichit is grinning at him in a way that makes Victor worry he has something planned. “We’ll stop talking so long as you make us a promise.”

 

               “That does not sound like an agreement that is going to work out for me in the long run.”

 

               “Suit yourself.” Chris’ grin mirrors Phichit’s and Victor is suddenly struck by the thought that maybe he should have spent less time focused on Yuri and more time focused on dialing back Chris and Phichit’s friendship. It appears they have formed quite the formidable team. “I guess that means we have free rein to bring up the topic again right in the middle of study group. In front of Yuri, and, well, everyone else.”

 

               “You are both inhuman monsters.” Victor rolls his eyes and hovers for a moment. He wants to call their bluff. He wants to, but he is more than a little concerned it’s not a bluff at all. “Fine, what’s the promise?”

 

               “We want to be the best men at the wedding.” Phichit has an eyebrow raised. “You know, when you marry Yuri. We want dibs.”

 

               “What a waste of a promise. You act like there were any other options.”

 

               Phichit and Chris exchange a Look. Victor get the feeling he’s somehow said something wrong. Or maybe he’s said something right. It’s hard to tell these days.

 

               “I told you.” Chris closes his textbook and leans forward on the couch to place it on the table in front of him. “You didn’t believe me, but I told you. Pay up.”

 

               “You know Victor better than I do. How is that even fair? I thought he’d at least _pretend_ to be scandalized.” Phichit grumbles, but he shuts his laptop and digs in his pocket, pulling out a few crumpled bills and tossing them in Chris’ general direction. “I’ll get you back for this sooner or later. I just want you to know that.”

 

               “By my count the score is now two to zero in my favor. I’m not too worried about it.” Chris scrambles to pick up the bills from where they have fallen on the floor.

 

               “We still have all of Europe to go. I have plenty of time to catch up.”

 

               “I’m almost too afraid to ask, but what bet did I help you win this time?” Victor knows he should be a bit more upset about the fact that his friends are still betting on his love life. He knows they mean no harm by it, though. He can’t say he wouldn’t have done the same if the situation were reversed.

 

               “That you would be seriously considering putting a ring on it.” Chris sounded smug as he began to count his winnings. “You don’t commit to people often, but when you do, you commit hard. _You have always been a romantic at heart, my friend_.”

 

               “ _You say that like it’s a bad thing_.” Victor rests his forearms on the cold counter in front of him. Switches back to English for Phichit’s benefit. “By the way, just because the thought has crossed my mind, it doesn’t mean it’s going to happen any time soon.”

 

               He’s not lying. The thought has crossed his mind. Logically, he knows it shouldn’t. He’s known Yuri for about three and a half months now. They had their first kiss four weeks ago and started publicly dating barely a week before now. They haven’t even slept together yet. It is absolutely insane to be thinking about the rest of his life right now, but Victor can’t help it.

 

               Maybe it had been a bad idea to set up shop in his old flat for this month.

 

               Seeing Yuri here, in his space, playing with his dog, curled up with the other man on his couch, in the city he’d grown up in… It was giving him _ideas_.

 

                As for whether those ideas were a good thing or a bad thing, the jury was still out.

 

~

 

               Yuri felt himself being drawn from deep sleep and into wakefulness slowly but surely. His mind is fuzzy, still trying to hold onto the last vestiges of the peaceful rest he’d been having.

 

               Stifling a yawn, Yuri buried his face in the pillow underneath his head. He tried to shift his body forward, intending to seek out a cooler portion of the sheets in this hopes that it might help ease his body back into sleep.

 

               At the movement, the steady weight he’d been feeling just under his ribcage increased, dragging Yuri back into a heavy warmth against his back.

 

               That was strange. It was almost as though he’d felt something like that before. Odd.

 

               The pieces suddenly clicked into place and Yuri remembered exactly where he’d felt something like this before. It had taken him a moment to place the feeling since the last time he’d woken up in Victor’s arms, he’d had a raging hangover and they had been on the floor and not curled up in a comfortable bed.

 

               “Please don’t run away again. It’s way too early to chase you.”

 

               It took every ounce of willpower Yuri possessed not to jerk out of Victor’s tight grasp. Victor’s voice was low, rough with sleep, and the words had been said right into the nape of Yuri’s neck, the Russian’s breath ghosting across the sensitive skin there in a way that would have made him shiver if his body not been frozen in place, locked between wanting to melt into Victor’s solid warmth and jumping away.

 

               Bits and pieces came back to him. Studying until three am with their friends. Half of the group deciding to call a cab and make their way back to their own beds while the other half had ended up camping out on Victor’s living room floor. Yuri, following Victor into the bedroom to wash his face and prepare for bed. Sitting down with the other man and talking for another fifteen minutes, feeling as though a lead weight was settling over every joint before Victor suggested he just sleep there so he wouldn’t have to stumble around in the dark and risk waking their friends. Yuri being too tired to protest and falling unconscious before his anxiety could talk him out of it.

 

               “I seem to recall you agreeing to stay on your side of the bed.”

 

               Yuri’s body was relaxing a bit now that his mind had caught up to how it had ended up this way. All things considered, there were worse places to be than a bedroom in Russia with Victor Nikiforov as his personal heater. At least this time he hadn’t had to acquire alcohol poisoning to make it happen.

 

               It helped that this time Victor was behind him, so Yuri didn’t have to actually make any kind of eye contact.

 

               “I… May have lied about that.” Victor sounded hesitant, like he wasn’t sure if that was something he should admit to. Yuri felt the pressure from where Victor was now pressing his forehead at the spot where his neck met the collar of his t-shirt. “I didn’t do it on purpose, though… I just… Didn’t mention that this might happen.”

 

               “How I am not surprised that you’re a clingy sleeper?”

 

               The part of his brain where his anxiety lived was whispering at him. Letting him know that this was no good. That any minute now Yuri was going to say or do something to embarrass himself and then Victor would pull away. Probably forever.

 

               For once that part was so quiet it was almost insultingly easy to ignore.

 

               They lay there in silence for a long while. Long enough that Yuri was sure Victor had gone back to sleep.

 

               “This is okay, right?” Victor loosened his grip on Yuri’s waist and Yuri’s heart fluttered in his chest at the gesture. “You can get up if you want. I was just joking about chasing you.”

 

               “I know you were joking.” Yuri couldn’t believe it. He never thought he’d see the day when he would be the one trying to reassure Victor there was nothing to be nervous about. “This is fine. I’m fine. I… Can we just lay here for another minute?”

 

               “We can lay here for as long as you like and then some. Just say the word and we can stay here all day.”

 

               “Someone will come looking for us eventually.” Yuri pointed out.

 

               Victor hummed against Yuri’s skin, but didn’t say anything.

 

               It was almost too easy to imagine this was his life. That Yuri always woke up with Victor at his side every morning. That the grey sheets and pale blue comforter belonged to them, and not just to Victor. That if he were to go into the closet he would find his own clothes hanging there next to Victor’s.

 

               That the mug in the sink in the kitchen truly belonged to him instead of merely being a spare.

 

               The peaceful moment was broken as the sounds of muffled conversation began to filter in through the closed bedroom door. Yuri let out a tight sigh. The others were waking up. Moving around. Talking to each other. They would have to get up now or risk someone, probably Phichit, bursting in on them.

 

               “We’re never going to hear the end of this.” Yuri wiggled forward and this time Victor let him go. They both shifted around on the bed until they were in sitting positions, Yuri finally turning to look at his boyfriend for the first time that morning.

 

               Victor’s hair was ruffled and the collar of his oversized sweatshirt was hanging off his right shoulder, exposing quite a bit of pale skin and giving Yuri an unrestricted view of the other man’s collar bones. His expression was soft, open, and there was a flush riding high on his cheekbones. His blue eyes were narrowed against the sunlight filtering in through a break in the curtains and Yuri couldn’t help but stare as Victor subconsciously licked his lips.

 

               Forcing himself to look away, Yuri grabbed his glasses from the bedside table, sighing in relief as the fuzzy edges fell away and everything came into clear focus once again.

 

               “I can go out there first, if you want. Tell them you just got up and needed to use the toilet.” Yuri’s heart pounded from somewhere in the vicinity of his throat. Victor was offering him an out. A solution to the problem he hadn’t even thought about.

 

               “No, no.” Yuri ran his hands through his unruly hair. He knew he looked like an absolute mess. His bedhead was legendary. “They wouldn’t believe you even if you did. Well, some of them might. Phichit and Chris would definitely not. I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t be able to convince Yurio either, but that might be more because he always automatically jumps to the worst conclusion no matter how good of an actor you are.”

 

               Victor nodded in agreement.

 

               Yuri was about to get up, he actually needed to use the toilet for real now that he thought about it, but Victor reached out and grabbed his wrist to stop him.

 

               There it was again. That expression. The one that made Yuri think Victor was nervous. That Victor was the one terrified of making a fool of himself. The one that made him feel like he wasn’t the only one making this up as he went.

 

               “Yes?”

 

               “Did you… Did you maybe want to stay here again…? Like for the rest of the week?”

 

               Yuri felt faint. His head spun, colors flashed before his eyes. He couldn’t breathe, but in a good way this time. Not in an about to have a panic attack way. At least, he thought that’s what it was. Sometimes it was hard to be sure.

 

               He could see it. All of it. His daydreams from a few minutes ago right there for the taking if he could just find enough courage within himself to accept what was being offered.

 

               Victor’s hand was trembling on Yuri’s wrist and that’s what tipped the scales. If Victor could gather together the courage to ask, then Yuri should be able to get it together enough to give an answer.

 

               “Yes, I’d like that.”

 

~

 

               “ _Victor, my love, why do you continue to keep these secrets from me? I thought I was your friend!_ ” Chris and Victor had taken Makkachin for a walk today. Most everyone else was busy studying, writing papers, or taking tests. Chris had been the only one free. “ _I’m starting to think you don’t like me anymore!_ ”

 

               “ _Don’t fret, my dear. You will always be my first love._ ” Victor was in the best mood he’d ever been in. He felt like he was skipping. Okay, so he might have actually _been_ skipping earlier. At least until Makkachin had seen a red squirrel and had almost pulled him off his feet. Victor switches to English as they turn another corner. They should be far enough away from both Victor’s flat and the campus that no one they know would stumble upon them. “Besides, I haven’t been keeping secrets. I’m hurt that you would think that way.”

 

               “I’m not the one that slept with Yuri last night and refuses to give all the juicy details.”

 

               “That’s not because I don’t want to tell, it’s because there’s nothing to tell.” Victor tugs lightly on Makkachin’s leash in order to get his head out of a bush and back on track. “We slept. That’s it. Yuri was a complete gentleman the whole time. Didn’t try to take advantage of me once.”

 

               “That’s disappointing. Expected, but disappointing.” Chris shoved his hands into his pockets as they shuffled along.

 

               “Half of our friend circle was sleeping just outside my bedroom door.” Victor was quick to point out. “The walls aren’t exactly super thick. When and if I sleep with Yuri, I’m going to want quite a bit more privacy than that.”

 

               “Fair enough.”

 

               “My love life aside, how are you doing?” Victor hadn’t had the chance to really talk to Chris outside of those few nights in Thailand. Since arriving in Russia he’d been pulled between spending more time with Yuri and taking everyone around to see the sights. As much as he loved being home, he was looking forward to going somewhere that would require less translating and showing people around.

 

               “Much better, thank you for asking.” Chris really did seem better. Back to normal. Maybe a little slower to smile and joke sometimes, but overall happy enough. “I feel… Free… Like I’ve gained a new perspective on where I want to be right now.”

 

               “Glad to hear it.”

 

               They walked in companionable silence for another block.

 

               “Victor? Can I ask you a question?”

 

               “Of course. Anytime.” Victor’s curiosity was piqued. Usually Chris would just say whatever was on his mind with no preamble or preparation. The fact that he was asking permission now had to mean whatever he was about to say was important.

 

               “How did you know that you liked Yuri?”

 

Chris hesitated for moment and Victor, sensing his friend’s uncharacteristic unease, motioned towards a bench a few shop fronts down. They said nothing until they were seated, bodies turned inwards and Makkachin stretched on his stomach at their feet and panting happily.

 

               “How did I know I liked Yuri?” Victor repeated the question, more to make sure he’d heard it correctly than anything else.

 

               Chris nodded. “Yeah. How did you know you liked him? You know, _really_ liked him. More than a crush or an interesting bed partner.”

 

               “You want the honest answer?” Victor had to know. There were about four different responses he could think of off the top of his head, some more confusing than others. It didn’t sound like Chris wanted any of those responses, though.

 

               Chris nodded again.

 

               “To be honest, I’m not entirely sure.” Victor bit his lip as he turned over his thoughts. “It was a fluid thing. The first time I met him I remember thinking that I had just met an angel. Then I thought I was never going to see him again so I kind of built this perfect image in my head. The prince charming character. Riding in for the rescue and sweeping my off my feet. Then I met him again and I realized he was nothing at all like the picture I had of him in my head.”

 

               “Oh, really?” Chris chuckled and raised an eyebrow in encouragement. “So was he better or worse than the picture in your head?”

 

               “Neither. Just… Different.” Victor shrugged. There weren’t exactly words for what meeting Yuri for the second time had felt like. “I think I knew I liked him, then. Definitely far more than I should have. He was just so… Kind. And shy, and thoughtful. I wanted to be there for him. It was weird, I guess. I barely knew him, but I still wanted to keep him close to me. Like I knew if I gave it enough time he would become the most important thing in my life if I let him.”

 

               “I’ve never felt like this before, Chris. I promise you, I really am just making this up as I go.” Victor had never like to admit that underneath all the posturing, he was significantly less put together than he appeared. But this was Chris asking. Chris who had talked him through too many lonely nights when his life here had felt like it was too much to bear. He owed him at least this much. “It’s scary as hell. Whenever I think about how close I’ve come to losing him, how I still could lose him. It scares the shit out of me.”

 

               Chris is quiet again. Victor think if he squints hard enough he might be able to see the wheels turning in Chris’ head. He waits it out.

 

               “I never felt like that before, either. With Julien. With anyone.” Chris clarifies. “I don’t even know if I was sad when he called to break up with me. It felt like it, at the time. Felt like what I thought heartbreak should feel like, but the more I think about it, the more I think I was angry. Angry he would do something like that. Angry at myself that I hadn’t seen it coming. Not sad to see him go.”

 

               “Pissed off because he didn’t think I was good enough for him.”

 

               Chris help up a hand as Victor went to reflexively protest that Chris was, if anything, too good for his stupid, cheating ex.

 

               “I know that’s not right. We’re weren’t good together, truthfully. We were in different places mentally. He wanted to settle down, I still had that itch to see the world.” Chris flicked his wrist as though he were pushing the words away from him as they tumbled from his lips. “I shouldn’t have let it get as far as I did, but everyone kept telling me that he was good for me. How did my mother put it? ‘ _He’s marriage material, Christophe. You will graduate soon. He will take care of you._’ You know the drill.”

 

               Victor did not know the drill. His parents had never met any of his conquests before Yuri, and Yuri wasn’t exactly a ‘conquest’ anyway. No one had ever been on his back to settle down in any way, shape, or form, but he nodded in agreement none the less. He understood the sentiment, even if he’d never experienced the circumstance behind it before.

 

               “She thought he was good for me. I suppose she wasn’t wrong. When I was in Switzerland, he was good for me. Made sure I ate properly. Nagged me to go to the gym. In bed by nine o’clock on the dot. Research papers completed two days before the deadline.”

 

               “It was so _boring_.” Chris sighed and tilted his head back so that he was staring at the sky. “Domestic, but in a bad way. Stifling. I think I applied for the study abroad program to get away from him more than anything else. Still hurt like a bitch when he left me, though.”

 

               “Oh, god, Chris. I didn’t know.” Victor felt terrible. His best friend had been going through that for over a year and he hadn’t known. True, Chris hadn’t told him anything. Had done nothing but gush about his boyfriend whenever they would have their Skype dates, but Victor couldn’t shake the guilty feeling that he should have _known_ somehow. Should have been able to sense his friend’s distress even from a world away.

 

               “I should have told you sooner. I was embarrassed. I thought something was _wrong_ with me.” Chris slumped even further down into his seat. “All my friends and family kept telling me he was perfect. I couldn’t remedy their glowing praise with my stupid feelings.”

 

               “Seeing you with Yuri… I know I never looked like that when I was with Julien.”

 

               Victor swallowed hard against the lump in his throat.

 

               “Ah. But I am being depressing again.” Chris sat up, offering up a grin that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Never mind me.”

 

               “Don’t do that.” Victor knew he sounded a lot harsher than he meant to when Chris blinked and shuffled a bit further away. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap… Just… Don’t do that to yourself. Don’t trivialize it.”

 

               “You have people here who care about you. People who just want you to be yourself.” Victor tapped his fingers nervously against his thigh. “That is something Yuri has helped me with, more than anything else. Before, I didn’t even know who I was. I knew what other people thought I was. Aside from my parents, who gave up a long time ago because I would never listen to them, everyone had an opinion of who they thought I should be. I just went along with it. I didn’t have any strong feelings one way or the other, so I was whatever they wanted me to be.”

 

               “Yuri’s the first person who wants me to be me.”

 

               Makkachin whined, sensing the distress coming from his owner and he rose up onto his haunches so that he could rest his chin on Victor’s knee. Chris reached out across the gap and pet the dog on the head.

 

               “Someone who just wants you to be you?” Chris sounded more curious than upset now. “You are so in over your head, aren’t you?”

 

               “Completely.”

 

               It didn’t even hurt to admit it anymore. He had come to peace with it months ago.

 

               “Wow… Just wow.” Chris let out a huff of breath and moved back over to his side of the bench again. “I wish I could say you’ve change, Victor, but I don’t think you have. I think you’ve always been this way, under the surface. I hope one day I can find someone that will help me the way Yuri has helped you.”

 

               “I can’t promise that you will, but I will say that I have every faith it will happen.” Victor knew that last thing Chris wanted to hear was more platitudes about how he just needed to be patient and the right partner would come along. They were both old enough to know that wasn’t always the case. “You’re always so much further ahead of the curve than I ever was. You already are who you want to be. Now it’s just a matter of finding the person that can see how much of a good thing that really is.”

 

               “I just wish they’d hurry up about it.” Any lingering tension had bled out of Chris’ tone by now. “Come on. We should be getting back. Yurio’s going to freak if you don’t show up at the studio on time. He’s been going on for days about you meeting his dance teacher.”

 

               They stand up to go.

 

               “Hey, Victor.”

 

               Victor pauses and glances back at his friend.

 

               “Just so you know… I like the real you much better.”

 

~

 

               Yurio’s dance instructor turned out to be terrifying.

 

               She was an older woman, a prima ballerina in her professional life. Her cheekbones were so sharp Victor was afraid he’d be cut if he were to reach out to touch. Her eyes were green and felt as though they pierce through your very soul. She looked Victor as though she somehow already found him lacking even though he hadn’t done anything yet.

 

               Even Yurio seemed hesitant in her presence, some of his usual arrogance tempered somewhat.

 

               She loved Yuri, of course.

 

               “ **A waste! What a waste of a perfect dancer!** ” Lillia Baranovskaya tapped her cane against the ground in a way that made all those present flinch subconsciously. “ **He wants to be a businessman? With turns like those? Bah! A waste!** ”

 

               “ **Madam Lillia. You know he doesn’t speak Russian.** ” Yurio sounded angrier than usual, and that was saying something since he lived in a constant state of anger. Victor could tell the younger Russian was grinding his teeth.

 

               Yuri was standing at the barre, one leg held away from his body, toes pointed towards the floor. He looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Not sure exactly what was going on and too scared to ask. Victor felt a pang of sympathy and reached out to place a hand on his shoulder in an effort to soothe him when Lillia’s cane came crashing down on the barre between them, almost crushing Victor’s hand if he hadn’t moved it fast enough.

 

               Victor let out a decidedly unmanly squeak.

 

               “ **Did I say you could touch him?** ” Then, as though she finally realized Yuri hadn’t understood a word that was being said, she switched to English. “You. You have trained with a prima, yes?”

 

               “Uh… Y-yes?” Yuri hadn’t stammered like that in a long time. Victor felt another tug at his heart, but he kept his hands to himself. The last thing he wanted was broken fingers.

 

               “Who?”

 

               It was more of a demand than a question and Yuri paled.

 

               “O-Okukawa Minako-sensei.”

 

               “Ah, yes, I can see it in your hands. Minako’s influence.” Lillia took a step closer. “She taught you well and, in turn, you have taught my Yurochka well. You have my thanks.”

 

               “I didn’t do much. Victor was the one who really…”

 

               “Vitya? You think Vitya taught him how to soften his arms in his fortes?” Lillia was now glaring at Victor. It was all he could do to keep his cocky grin plastered on his face as a shield of sorts while he tried desperately to keep his knees from knocking together. “No. I know better. As a choreographer, he is not terrible. Not good, but not terrible. The changes to Yurochka’s programs can stay. As a teacher, he is nothing.”

 

               “You will all come back. I have two weeks left to me to make something out of nothing. Four times a week. No excuses. I must know my Yurochka is being instructed properly in my absence.”

 

               Lillia clacked her cane against the floor. Victor snapped to attention as did Yuri and Yurio.

 

               “The three of you. To the center of the room. I will watch again from the top.”

 

               They quickly scrambled to obey. Even Yurio moved fast, his grumbles kept to a minimum.

 

               As Lillia walked over to turn on the music, Victor heard her continue to mutter under her breath.

 

               “ **She let him become a businessman? Bah. I must speak with her about this tragedy. Wasted talent. That is what it is.** ”

 

~

 

               I don’t think I can move.”

 

               It was a pressing concern. Victor was sprawled on his stomach on his bed and every cell in his body ached. He hadn’t felt like this since before he had quit figure skating all those years ago. His right knee felt like it was on fire, a stark reminder of exactly why he’d had to quit.

 

               “I wish I could help you, but I can’t move either.” Yuri was lying next to him on his back, staring at the ceiling with a glazed look in his eyes. “Oh, god. We have to go back tomorrow, and the day after that. I think I’m going to die.”

 

               “What are you complaining about? She liked you.”

 

               “If this is how she shows she likes me, I don’t want it.” Yuri groaned as he tried to roll over on his side. Or, at least that’s what Victor thought he was trying to do. He didn’t quite make it, instead aborting the motion and continuing to stare at the ceiling. “I can now see where Yurio gets his stubbornness from.”

 

               “We shouldn’t go back. I’m concerned she might end up kidnapping you.”

 

               Yuri makes a noise that sounds like he’s choking and Victor bullies the muscles in his neck until he has turned his head to see Yuri’s eyes are now wide with fear.

 

               “You don’t think she would really do that, do you?”

 

               Victor grunts in response.

 

               They lay like that for a minute more before Yuri does manage to roll over onto his side and Victor somehow forces his screaming body to do the same so that they are now face to face.

 

               “She called you Vitya.” Yuri looks soft now, in the fading light coming in through the window from the setting sun. His glasses are off, abandoned somewhere in Victor’s flat, and his bangs are falling in his eyes. “Your parents call you that, too. I didn’t know you had a nickname.”

 

               “It’s not a nickname, not really. It’s a Russian thing. A diminutive.” Victor sighs. “I guess it is a nickname, in a way. Lillia uses it because I am her student, even if it only for these next two hellish weeks. Other than that, you would only hear my friends or family, or maybe close coworkers, if I had those, use it. Like how Yurio calls Otabeck, Beka. Or how Otabeck will call him Yura.”

 

               “Oh, I get it. Like how I would call Yuko, Yuko-chan. To show I am familiar with her.” Yuri looks as though he is regaining some of his energy and Victor is once again struck by the fact that Yuri never fakes his interest in the cultures he is immersed in. He genuinely wants to learn and adapt.

 

               “Vitya…” The way Yuri says it sends sparks down Victor’s spine. The way the syllables roll off his tongue. His Japanese accent makes the hard ‘V’ into more of a soft ‘B’ and the ‘T’ comes out sharper than it should.

 

               Victor has never heard anything sexier in his entire life.

 

               “You can use it if you like. I don’t mind.”

 

               “Hmmm… I can do that. Maybe when we’re alone.” Yuri yawns then, covering his mouth with his forearm. Victor clenches his fists in his sheets to stop himself from reaching out and brushing Yuri’s bangs away from his face.

 

               He knows if he reaches out now, he’ll never stop.

 

               “We should go to bed.” He says instead. Yuri nods and they rouse themselves with a chorus of groans.

 

               They each take their turn in the bathroom, washing their faces, brushing their teeth, and changing into t-shirts and sweatpants. Yuri is the first to wiggle in under the covers as Victor turns off the lights and joins him once the room as been plunged into darkness. There is a soft thump that heralds Makkachin’s arrival as the dog curls up in his favorite spot at the end of the bed.

 

               It takes a moment for the three of them to settle in. Victor and Yuri are lying on their sides, facing each other again. Victor wants to reach out to Yuri so badly, but he resists. He knows that by morning he’ll have shifted in his sleep and will end up with Yuri snug against him again. He really is a clingy sleeper.

 

               Victor drifts off quickly, his mind just as exhausted as his body.

 

               “Goodnight, Yuri.”

 

               Goodnight… Vitya.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> As I am getting this edited and uploaded at 1:20am my time, I will respond to all your lovely comments from the last chapter later. Please know that I appreciate each and every one of them!
> 
> How about some more ice skating? Ice skating for everyone!

April – Russia

 

               Once midterms are over, everyone breathes out a massive sigh of relief.

 

               This also means Victor is suddenly the most popular person in class.

 

               “Don’t they know that there is another Russian on this trip?” Victor’s habit of being accommodating to any reasonable request was starting to become more of a curse than a blessing as the week went on and everyone and their grandmother kept coming to him with ideas for excursions in and around the city.

 

               “They know, but the other Russian is Yurio and there’s a higher than average change he’ll agree to take them out, only to purposefully leave them in the middle of the city with no directions for how to get back.” Phichit stated from where he was fiddling with the coffee maker in the kitchen. Phichit, Chris, and Yuri were back at Victor’s flat, it having become a base of operations of sort for them lately. “As hilarious as that would undoubtedly be, most of our companions are too smart to fall for that more than once.”

 

               “To be fair, JJ had it coming. He should have known better than to blindly follow Yurio into the city at night.” Chris pointed out from his boneless sprawl on Victor’s couch. “And to give Yurio his phone in order to have his picture taken? You don’t have to be a psychic to know how that was going to end up. Besides, we found him eventually. He was only lost for like two hours, tops.”

 

               “More than enough time to put everyone off asking Yurio for a tour.” Yuri was sitting on the floor playing with Makkachin. At the current moment, he was holding one end of a green rope and the poodle was pulling on the other. “Speaking of Yurio, when are he and Otabeck supposed to get here?”

 

               “Should be any minute now.” Victor idly scrolled through his phone, pausing every so often to take a picture of Yuri playing with his dog. His camera roll is full of such pictures now. A particularly adorable one of Yuri and Makkachin at the park is his new lock screen. A selfie of Yuri and he in front of the Winter Place is his background.

 

               “Hey, where do you keep your filters?” Phichit can be heard rummaging around in the drawers in Victor’s kitchen.

 

               “Second cabinet to the right, above the sink.” Yuri provides this answer, only half paying attention to what is going on around him now as Makkachin has begun to tug harder on his end of the rope, causing Yuri to have to focus harder or else lose his grip.

 

               Chris looks over at Victor, eyebrows wagging and Victor feels his face heat in response. There is a warmth settling in the pit of his stomach that definitely shouldn’t be there. It should not please him as much as it does that Yuri knows exactly where he stores his coffee filters. That Yuri is comfortable enough in Victor’s home to offer this knowledge without thinking.

 

               Almost as though this is his home now, too.

 

               Before Victor can chase that thought any further down the rabbit hole the front door opens with a bang. He winces, hoping that Yurio has not managed to knock another chunk of plaster loose from the wall. He’ll have to double check and arrange to have it fixed later if he has. Victor kind of wants his deposit back one of these days.

 

               “We’re here!” Yurio announces, as though half the complex hadn’t heard the door slam.

 

               Makkachin released his rope and runs off to greet the two men making their way through the foyer. Yurio grumbles something in Russian about smelly dogs, and Otabeck reaches down to give the dog a gentle pat on the head. His duty in making sure these intruders are not a threat done, Makkachin bounces back across the room, launching himself down belly up on Yuri’s lap.

 

               Victor takes another picture.

 

               “Did you losers come up with any plans for something to do today?” Yurio flops onto Victor’s couch on the opposite side from where Chris is sitting. He doesn’t even kick his shoes off before he put his feet on the coffee table in front of him. Victor thinks about chastising him for it for what must have been the millionth time, but, in the end, he stays silent. There wasn’t really a point.

 

               “We hadn’t gotten that far yet.” Yuri is rubbing Makkachin’s exposed stomach as the dog wiggles around in his lap. Makkachin isn’t light by any means, but Yuri doesn’t seem upset at all, laughing as the poodle’s tongue begin to loll out of his mouth. “Did you have any ideas?”

 

               “If I had any ideas I’d be out doing them and not wasting my time with you idiots.” Yurio says this with his usual snarl and scowl. It makes Chris subconsciously scoot even firth away and Phichit can be heard shuffling nervously in the kitchen. Even Victor can’t stop the muscles in his legs from tensing as they prepare to run in case this is the time Yurio finally snaps for good.

 

Yuri simply smiles in that bright reserved way he has, going back to focusing his full attention on Victor’s dog.

 

               Huh. That’s interesting.

 

               Before Victor can think about it any further Phichit bounces back into the room, the smell of coffee brewing following in his wake.

 

               “Coffee should be ready in a few. After that, I think we should go somewhere.” He eyes where Otabeck is now leaning against a nearby wall. Stares for a second at the empty spot on the couch between Yurio and Chris. Raises an eyebrow towards where Victor has claimed the armchair for himself that morning. Chooses to take a spot next to Yuri on the floor. Excellent choice. “No offense, Victor, this place is lovely, but we’ve been studying here for the past two weeks. Time to get out and stretch our legs.”

 

               “I feel like we’ve seen all the touristy places.” Chris isn’t quite complaining, but there is a tinge of frustration in his tone. Victor knows the feeling. He’s pretty sure he’s going to scream if he has to go through another museum or shuffle around on another walking tour of the historic sites. “Victor? What would you be doing on a Saturday afternoon if we weren’t here?”

 

               “You mean what I would be doing if I didn’t want to just laze around here watching Netflix, I assume?”

 

               “Of course that’s what he fucking means.” Yurio shoots Victor a solid glare from underneath his bangs. “ **No one wants to watch you sit around in your underwear pathetically watching TV all day**.”

 

               “ **And no one wants a needy kitten hanging around either.** ” Victor shoots back. Yurio hisses, but a deep chuckle from Otabeck’s corner saves Victor’s life as the blonde teen is now more focused on glaring at his friend. “What would I do if I wanted to go out on a Saturday afternoon…? Oh! I have an idea.”

 

               Victor pulls up his contact list on his phone and shoots a quick text to a friend of his.

 

               “Are you going to tell us what that idea is?” Phichit asks.

 

               “First I need to make sure it’s a viable suggestion.” Victor shrugs as he waits for a reply. “There’s no point getting everyone excited if we can’t go.”

 

               “ **What if I don’t want to go when I know what it is?** ” Yurio sighs heavily and tilts his head back against the top of the couch so that he’s staring at the ceiling.

 

               “ **Yura, stop being a pest. If you don’t want to go, you don’t have to**.” Otabeck speaks and Victor almost jumps in surprise to hear the Russian fall out of his mouth, rough around the edges, Otabeck’s deep voice not giving it the same passionate lilt as when Victor or Yurio speaks it.

 

               “ **Whatever.** ” Yurio pulls the hood of his sweater over his head and slumps in on himself, dragging his phone out of a pocket and choosing to focus on it instead.

 

               “ _Looks like someone’s found a way to put the kitten on a leash._ ” Chris shared an amused glance with Victor over Yurio’s head. “ _How long do you think that’s going to last?_ ”

 

               “English!” Yurio shouts.

 

               The irony is not lost on Chris or Victor, but they silently agree not to say anything more for fear of setting off one of Yurio’s infamous rants.

 

Phichit and Yuri hide their giggles. Poorly.

 

               Otabeck sighs.

 

               Victor’s phone buzzes in his hand and he reads the message, smiling to himself as he taps out a hasty reply.

 

               “Anyone want to go skating?”

 

~

 

               It turned out everyone wanted to go skating. Even Yurio, although he did bitch about it for a good five minutes before admitting it.

 

               The trip wasn’t long. Usually Victor would have walked or jogged, but one of Yurio’s complaints was being sore from their lesson with Lillia the day before, and, even though he wasn’t going to admit it out loud, Victor was feeling a similar ache. Instead, they caught a bus on the corner and ended up at the rink in ten minutes.

 

               “I never knew this was here.” Yurio kicked a pebble on the sidewalk as they walked in a group up to the entrance of the square, red bricked building Victor had led them to. “I must have jogged this way a thousand times, but I never knew there was a rink here.”

 

               “Not many people do. It’s a private rink. Not open to the public at all.” Victor explained. “The Russian National Figure Skating team trains here. Only team members and coaches allowed, but I have some friends that let me in when the skaters have an off day or are away for competitions. It’s much nicer than having to share a public rink which can get crowded.”

 

               “Are they even going to have skates for us?” Chris asked as he eyes the bag hanging off Victor’s shoulder. It contained his personal pair of skates and some other things like gloves and bandages and an extra pair of socks.

 

               “They do. They keep quite a stock of extras in case someone has an equipment malfunction without enough time to get their own pair either fixed or replaced before a competition.” Victor pauses in front of a nondescript metal door. “It happened one time, but Yakov never forgot, so he bothered the state until the supplied him what he was asking for.”

 

               “Yakov? Yakov Feltsman? _The_ Yakov Feltsman?” Phichit looked like he was going to pass out. “Five time World Champion from 1965 to 1970? That one?”

 

               “I don’t know any others.” Victor pressed a button hidden in an alcove off to the left of the door as he looked back at Phichit, slightly concerned the younger man was about to hyperventilate. “Are you okay?”

 

               “He’ll be fine.” Yuri was patting his friend on the back gently as Phichit was now squealing. “I should have warned you. He’s a bit of a major figure skating fan. Usually it’s not this much of a problem.”

 

               “Oh my god! Is he going to be here?”

 

               “I doubt it.” The door buzzed and there was a resounding click as Victor reached out and turned the handle, pushing it forward. “If he were here, we definitely wouldn’t be allowed within ten kilometers of this place.”

 

               They all piled in behind him.

 

               The lobby was clean and bright, with tiled floors and a curved receptionist’s desk at the back of the room that was empty. Victor lead the way, not even pausing as he pushed through the next door, the chill air from the rink slapping him in the face as he went.

 

               “Oh, wow….”

 

               Victor could hear one or two soft gasps from behind him and he couldn’t help but smirk. It was a beautiful place after all. It was part of what would always draw him back here.

 

               It was big, almost like a warehouse in its vastness, and mostly empty. A few benches pushed alongside the walls and the center space taken up by a large rink, red and white waist high walls surrounding it, glinting in the sunlight cast on it form the floor to ceiling windows than ran the length of the south wall, showing off a spectacular view of the Neva River.

 

               “ **Victor! I didn’t think we’d be seeing you until next year!** ”

 

               “ **Mila! Thanks for letting us in!** ” Victor opened his arms and let the tall redheaded girl give him a quick hug before she took a step back and waved enthusiastically at gaping group behind him. Her blue eyes were sparking as she bounced on the ball of her feet.

 

               “Yuri! Yuri, it’s Mila Babicheva!” Phichit was now jumping up and down and pulling on Yuri’s sleeve.

 

               “Yes, Phichit. I can see her. I might wear glasses, but I’m not blind.” Yuri was blushing again as he smiled weakly in Mila’s direction. “S-sorry about him. He’s a fan.”

 

               “I can tell.” Mila laughed. She spoke English well, as all the Russian National Team did. It made it easier to communicate with the international sport community in general. “Well, come on! We’ve got about two hours before Yakov and Georgi get here and you have to scamper.”

 

               They followed her with varying degrees of excitement. Phichit had jumped to the front of the group and was chattering with Mila about her short program from her most recent season as they ended up in the equipment room and began finding skates in the proper sizes. Yuri had returned to Victor’s side, clearly giving up on trying to hang onto his friend.

 

               “Phichit seems happy.” Victor stated, more as a way to make idle conversation than a true observation. You would have had to be beyond blind to not notice the Thai man’s enthusiasm.

 

               “I think he took me quitting the sport harder than I did, and he didn’t even find out about it until years afterwards.” Yuri pulled a pair of skates off a nearby rack and began inspecting the screws holding the blades in place. “He used to skate, too, but there weren’t a lot of opportunities for him in Thailand so it never went anywhere. He would have been great at it, though.”

 

               “I’m starting to think every single person on this trip has a dark figure skating past to dredge up.” Chris joked from his spot on a bench. He’d already found some skates he liked and was currently tugging them on his feet.

 

               “I don’t.” Yurio plopped down onto the bench next to Chris and began to unlace the leopard print hightops he was wearing. “I only ever wanted to dance. It’s too fucking cold in Russia as it is. I don’t need to spend my time sliding around on ice.”

 

               “I’m starting to think you might not be Russian at all.” Chris teased, ignoring the middle finger salute he received for his efforts. “I can’t say I’ve done much skating myself, though my parents signed me up for lessons when I was a wee boy. They thought I would make friends. All I did was break my wrist.”

 

               “It’s not for everyone.” Mila chirped. Phichit was now distracted by lacing his skates as quickly as he could. “I love it, though. I’d probably still do it even if I was terrible at it.”

 

               Victor had to agree. He might not have been able to hold up to the rigors of international competition with his knee, but that didn’t mean he had given up on the ice completely.

 

               It wasn’t long before everyone was out on the ice.

 

               Otabeck and Yurio were the worst. Otabeck being the slightly better of the pair as he kept calm and didn’t frantically flail his arms every time his blades slipped underneath him in an unexpected way. To Yurio’s credit, he was graceful enough that he managed to stay upright for the most part, but there were many, many close calls.

 

               Chris wasn’t terrible. He could move without jerking every which way once he’d warmed up a bit and was accomplished enough to able to skate backwards and do a few spins.

 

               Phichit was a monster.

 

               The Thai man was grace incarnate, all high energy and sharp, sudden movements. He and Mila had hit it off splendidly. They had apparently made a deal that for every successful jump Phichit landed, she would do the same but add an extra rotation. Victor watched as Phichit landed a double Salchow and Mila instantly launched herself into a triple almost immediately after.

 

               Yuri and Victor watched as they skated around side by side. Every so often one or the other would make a comment or a correction to Chris, who was now trying to get in on Mila and Phichit’s jump competition even though he could barely jump forward half a meter without tumbling to the ground.

 

               “Yuri! Show us a jump!” Phichit flew past him, throwing his body into a single loop before skating off laughing, color riding high in his cheeks.

 

               “Yes! Jump!” Victor pushed Yuri forward, grinning as the Japanese man rolled his eyes, but pushed off hard with his right skate. He built up more speed before executing a double loop.

 

               Victor followed suit, changing the double loop to a double toe loop as it was easier on his knee.

 

               “Wow, Yuri! Your technique is great!” Mila skid to a stop next to them. “Vitya, where did you find these two?”

 

               “Japan of all places.” Victor held his hands up and shrugged. “They’re great, right?”

 

               “ **Yakov is going to shit bricks if finds out what kind of talent he could have had if you’d found them sooner.** ” Mila shoved her shoulder into Victor’s.

 

               “ **Then we’ll just have to keep this our little secret, yes?** ”

 

               Mila laughs in agreement, skating over to where Yurio and Otabeck are still hovering near the wall, squealing in delight as she grabs Yurio by the hand and tries to spin him around with her while he screams obscenities at her in Russian.

 

               Phichit is back with Chris, showing him pointers on how to angle his blades to push off with more control. Victor skates over to Yuri, spraying ice chips across Yuri’s borrowed skates as he turns his blades and comes to a stop. He holds out a hand.

 

               “Shall we dance?”

 

               Yuri shakes his head, but he takes the proffered hand and lets Victor pull him along.

 

               It’s a bit awkward at first. They’re both trying to find a rhythm, their bodies drifting between too far away and so close that Victor is concerned they are going to catch each other’s skates. Eventually they sort something out.

 

               It’s peaceful. Like they are caught in their own private bubble. Victor is vaguely aware of the others on the ice. Yurio squawking as Mila continues to tease him. Phichit and Chris pushing and shoving each other as they race around the edges of the rink. Otabeck conversing with Mila in Russian whenever Yurio quiets enough for him to get a word in.

 

               He is aware of them, but in the way one would be aware of the patter of rain on a window pane, or the bubbling of a pot of water ready to boil. Present, but not the main focus.

 

               They spin and twirl, hands separating and then coming back together again. Yuri’s hands on his waist one moment, Victor running his gloved fingers down Yuri’s arm another. Victor skates backwards, pulling Yuri along with him to gain momentum before they switch, Yuri spinning out and away, all the way to the end of Victor’s reach before their hands catch and inertia takes over, Yuri pulling against his wrist as they change positions.

 

               Victor gets brave. Maybe too brave. When Yuri loops past him the next time, he reaches out and pulls him close, forgetting to check the placement of their feet and catching his toe pick against the back edge of Yuri’s blade. They wobble and go down in heap.

 

               The ice is cold and hard against Victor’s back, but he doesn’t care. Doesn’t care because they are both giggling. Victor takes another chance. Reaches out and cups the back of Yuri’s head, pulling him down for a kiss.

 

               It barely lasts for five seconds before they are broken out of their private world by Phichit and Chris whooping in the background.

 

               Then they are both back up on their feet, brushing ice chips from their clothing and sporting matching blushes.

 

               It’s starting to feel like any day spent with Yuri is the best day of his life.

 

~

 

               Two days before they are scheduled to leave, Yurio has his dance showcase.

 

               Yurio has invited them to come. The original study group. Seung-Gil, Leo, and Guang Hong, too. They meet in front of the dorm and make their way to the auditorium where the show is going to be held. It’s far too early, the performance won’t be until later in the evening, but Yurio will be running through his programs one more time with his instructor and he wanted to go to lunch with everyone while they wait.

 

               “Your grandfather is supposed to come up from Moscow, isn’t he?” Otabeck asks as they settle themselves around a table in one of the campus cafeterias. Typically, they tried to go off campus to eat in order to continue to broaden their horizons, but there isn’t much time before Yurio has to be back at the auditorium to change and make last minute preparations for his show, so they don’t have enough time to do their usual wandering around.

 

               “Yeah. He can’t get away from work in time to make it until right before the performance starts, but he’ll be here.” Yurio has never said much about his family situation, but Victor has heard enough to know that Yurio’s grandfather is the only one who supports the younger Russian’s dancing. The blonde’s parents are more concerned with their son getting an education and finding proper employment. “I don’t think he’ll be able to stay for very long afterwards, either.”

 

               “It’s nice that he’s making the trip, though.” Victor says casually. “We’ll all be there to support you, too. I can’t wait to see how it looks with costumes and lighting. It’s going to be amazing. You’ll get top marks for sure.”

 

               “Of course I will! I’m the best dancer in this whole school.” To an outsider, it would seem like Yurio is bragging like he often does. To Victor, who has seen the way Yurio pours his heart and soul into his every motion, he knows it is nothing more or less than a statement of fact.

 

               Yurio shuffles his shoulders and looks down at the table.

 

               “Thanks for agreeing to come.”

 

               “We wouldn’t dream of missing it.” Yuri keeps his tone nonchalant. Not drawing attention to his statement all. Quickly changing the subject as soon as the words are said. “Phichit, have you thought anymore about what you want to do for your birthday once we get to Switzerland?”

 

               “Can’t say that I have.” Phichit has been scrolling through something on his phone, but he puts it down as Yuri asked his question. “We’re going to be traveling on my actual birthday, and I’ll bet everyone will still be fairly tired the day after…”

 

               “There’s a club I know close to campus. Waiting for the second day after we get there would make it a Tuesday…. Ah!” Chris’ face brightens. “Forget the club. I know the perfect place!”

 

               “Something tells me this is not going to end well.” Leo twists his lips in a rough approximation of a concerned smirk. “The last time you threw a party we ended up sick for two days.”

 

               “Technically Yuri threw that party.” Victor corrects as Yuri jabs an elbow in his side.

 

               “Wait a minute. It’s my birthday and I want to hear Chris’ suggestion.” Phichit turns back to Chris. “You were saying?”

 

               “I was _saying_ , there’s a place I know that does a show on Tuesday nights. Cabaret style.” Chris wiggles his eyebrows and half the table groans. “Tasteful! It’s tasteful! I swear!”

 

               “Somehow I am not surprised you would think of that.” Guang Hong mutters under his breath before he takes a large drink out of his water bottle.

 

               “I like it!” Phichit claps his hands together and grins. “We should do it.”

 

               Now it’s Yuri’s turn to groan. Victor reaches out and pats him on the back. Really, they all should have seen something like this coming. Chris is incorrigible and Phichit is optimistically down for anything. It was probably only a matter of time before something like this happened anyway.

 

               “We can do dinner first.” Chris is quick to offer a compromise. “Then whoever wants to go to the show can come, and anyone who doesn’t can go back to the dorm. No hard feelings.”

 

               “Sounds fair.” Seung-Gil nods his head in agreement. “I suppose we can discuss it more once we have all the details.”

 

               They leave it at that, the conversation turning to more mundane topics like the Thai drama Phichit has somehow managed to get half the class hooked on.

 

               Before they know it, Yurio is excusing himself to attend to his last minute preparations.

 

               It is time for them to make their own way to the auditorium not long after.

 

~

 

               Yurio’s grandfather is a serious looking older man. Gruff, Russian, and somber.

 

               Victor can see the pride he has in his grandson easily through the rough exterior.

 

               “He doesn’t speak English.” Yurio directs this comment at Yuri. The others had already left to go back to the dorm, choosing to congratulate Yurio on his performance later, but Yurio had asked Victor and Yuri to stay behind. “But Victor and I can translate for you.”

 

               “Thanks, Yurio.” Yuri turns towards Yurio’s grandfather, Victor was pretty sure Yurio had said he name was Nikolai, and smiles. “Your grandson is very talented. It was an amazing performance.”

 

               “ **He says I’m talented and he enjoyed the performance.** ” Yurio translates.

 

               “ **What is this ‘Yurio’? Why do your friends call you this?** ” Nikolai’s accent is deep and guttural and has a country bent, but Victor can understand it well enough.

 

               “ **His name is also Yuri, sir.”** Victor gestures towards his Yuri for emphasis. “ **We needed a way to make a distinction between the two.** ”

 

               Nikolai turns this information over in his mind for a moment before turning back to where Yuri is waiting patiently. “ **Tell him I thank him for his kind words. Yurotchka is lucky to have nice friends like you. He speaks of you often.** ”

 

               “Nikolai says thank you and that Yurio is lucky to have us.” Victor is beaming as he translates and he ignores the dark glare he is receiving from the blonde Russian. “He also says Yurio talks about us a lot. All good things.”

 

               “He didn’t say that!” Yurio snaps. “He said I talk about you. Trust me, I wouldn’t ever say anything good. Especially not where you’re concerned, old man.”

 

               “Yurio, you wound me.” Victor places and hand over his heart. Yurio growls. Yuri rolls his eyes.

 

               “ **It is nice meeting you. We’ll let you spend some time with Yura alone.** ” Nikolai nods in acknowledgement of Victor’s suggestion and they exchanged stilted goodbyes.

 

               Yurio walks away arm in arm with his grandfather, chattering away in Russian as they go. Victor is struck by the thought that this is probably the first time he’s ever seen Yurio smile properly. Not a smirk or arrogant half-smile. A real one that reaches his eyes and causes them to sparkle.

 

               “It’s nice to see him happy.” Yuri laces his fingers through Victor’s and rests his head on Victor’s shoulder as they turn to leave. “He’s so stressed all the time. Puts too much pressure on himself. I’m glad his grandfather was able to come. He deserves the break.”

 

               “Yes, he does seem stressed often, doesn’t he?” Victor hadn’t really noticed, but now that Yuri pointed it out, it was glaringly obvious that a healthy chunk of Yurio’s aggression and sullenness was him lashing out against whatever was stressing him out. “I suppose it puts his overall bad attitude into perspective.”

 

               “I wish he wouldn’t push the others away so hard. I mean, I get why he does it. The fewer people he lets in, the fewer people he can let down if he fails, but he’d be a lot happier if he would rely on more than just us and Otabeck for a change.”

 

               “Rely on you and Otabeck you mean.” Victor states, amending Yuri’s comment for him. “He can barely stand me most of the time.”

 

               “And Phichit says I’m the unobservant one when it comes to people trying to form friendships with me.” Yuri pauses and Victor follows suit, looking down as Yuri takes a half step back so he can look up into Victor’s face. “He likes you. Perfect choreography or not, he wouldn’t keep inviting you back to the studio if he didn’t. Or he wouldn’t go out to eat with us, or have joined our study group, or do any of those other things he does if he didn’t like you.”

 

               “You never noticed?”

 

               “I… I can’t say that I have.” Victor frowns

 

               The more he thinks about it, the more he realizes it should have been obvious. Yurio is always around when Victor is. He’d basically attributed it to the fact that Victor’s presence was more or less incidental to Yuri’s presence these days, but that wasn’t quite it. He remembered back in Seoul after Yuri had panicked and avoided him for the worst two weeks of his life. Yurio still showed up whenever Victor was out and about. He still wanted Victor to come to the studio to help him.

 

               Victor was actually the only one in their group Yurio would hit or kick. He’d thought it was because the angry teenager hated him, or was upset about him trying to monopolize all of Yuri’s time and attention.

 

               He’d never considered it could have been for the opposite reason.

 

               “You see it now, don’t you? How he looks up to you?” Yuri asks as Victor pulls himself out of his ruminations.

 

               “Don’t ask me why. I do see it now, though.”

 

               Yuri is now looking at him with what can only be described as exasperation. “You seriously can’t see why?”

 

               “Nope!” Victor puts on his sunniest smile. “In any case, I’m glad. Our grumpy, little kitten needs more friends.”

 

               Yuri shakes his head, that exasperated expression still firmly locked into place. Well, that’s no good. Yuri looks far better when he isn’t clearly annoyed by Victor’s antics.

 

               To fix this, Victor kisses him.  


               “Victor!” Yuri laughs against his lips and returns the kiss, pulling back afterwards, all bright smiles and shining eyes again. There. That’s better.

 

               “Come on. Let’s go home.”

 

~

 

               Yuri casts one last look around Victor’s bedroom just to make sure he’s not missing anything. Victor himself was gone, taking Makkachin back to his parents’ house as they wouldn’t have time in the morning without risking missing their flight. Yuri had begged off this trip, citing the need to get his things together.

 

               He stares at the pile of bags in the center of the room. Victor had managed to convince Yuri to bring his things back here so they could have an early breakfast together in the morning before heading straight to the airport. It makes a strange sight, Yuri and Victors suitcases piled together. From where Yuri’s standing, it’s difficult to make out where Yuri’s bags end and Victor’s begin.

 

               The haphazard stack of luggage is starting to become a rather apt metaphor for his life, Yuri thinks. The stark lines that had once divide their lives. He’s not quite sure when it began happening, probably before arriving in Russia, but it’s definitely become more potent the longer they’ve been here. These days Yuri is having a harder time thinking in terms of one any longer.

 

               Now when he hears a funny joke, he thinks of Victor. Of how Victor might react. If he would laugh, too. If he did laugh, would it be that deep, rumbling chuckle, or the louder bark that he did when Yuri would sometimes catch him off guard?

 

               When he makes coffee in the mornings, he instinctually measures out enough grounds for two cups instead of one. At the library, he always makes sure to keep the chair next to him empty, eyes jumping up from whatever he’s working on whenever someone new enters the room just in case this time it’s Victor. When he’s shopping with Phichit, a scarf or a pair of glove will catch his eye and he’ll instantly wonder how the scarf would look wrapped around Victor’s pale neck or how the gloves would slide over those slender fingers and hug them just right.

 

               As he was picking up the last of his things from Victor’s room a pain had settled in his chest that was both comfortable and uncomfortable at the same time.

 

               If Yuri had known falling in love with Victor would have felt like this, he would have done it a long time ago.

 

               Yuri shakes his head to chase that thought back into the darkness from whence it had come. That was ridiculous. He hadn’t known Victor then. How could he have fallen in love with someone he didn’t know existed? Would he have just hopped on a plane and meandered around St. Petersburg until he finally ran into the other man? Hey, you don’t know me, but I’m pretty sure I’m supposed to fall in love with you. Care to skip the small talk and just take me home with you?

 

               Yes, a voice whispers in the back of his mind. For this, yes, you would do anything.

 

               It scares him, that thought. The fact that it comes so easy to him, as though it’s been sitting there just below the surface the whole time. Waiting for Yuri’s perspective to shift that last infinitesimal amount so that it can become visible at long last. The knowledge that Yuri is now at the place where he would do almost literally anything for Victor terrifies him and makes him feel weak in the knees.

 

               Four months ago he was sitting in his room in Hasetsu, a ball of nerves and negativity as he tried to prepare himself for what he thought was going to be the hardest year of his life.

 

               Now, he had Victor.

 

               He still couldn’t figure out how that happened.

 

               Couldn’t understand how shy, anxious Yuri had ended up sitting on the edge of a queen-sized bed in Russia while he waited for his insanely beautiful boyfriend to come back to him. Come to back to where they would share the same bed tonight and then hold hands on the way to the airport in the morning to jet off to another country.

 

               Yuri sinks back onto the bed, allowing gravity to ease him onto his back so he can scrutinize the ceiling as though it is going to give him the answer to all the questions he is still too afraid to ask.

 

               Victor will be home soon. Home. His home.

 

               Their home?

 

               No. Yuri removes his glasses and rolls over onto his stomach, rubbing his face in his pillow as he frantically tries to remove that thought from his consciousness. This isn’t their home. This is Victor’s home. Yuri doesn’t really belong here. He’s a guest. A visitor who is passing through. For all he knows, after tomorrow morning, he’ll never stand in this bedroom again.

 

               Oh, but he wants to, though.

 

               This was a bad idea. Letting Victor talk him into staying here for the last two weeks. He had known it was a bad idea, but Victor was so very good at convincing him to ignore those inner voices. Now he’d gotten a taste of what his life could be like if things were different. If he didn’t have to go back to Japan at the end of the year. Like being here in Russia, with Victor, was a thing he could actually have.

 

               When January rolls around, Victor will be here and Yuri won’t. There won’t be a duffle bag lying in the corner of Victor’s room any longer. There won’t be a second set of shampoo bottles in Victor’s shower. Only one toothbrush in the holder. The stack of books on the end table by the couch will be missing the ones written in Japanese.

 

               The mug in the kitchen will go back to being just another spare.

 

               It _hurts_. Yuri rolls over again, a hand pressed right over where his heart is.

 

               It burns him, from the inside out. Shakes him to his very core and leaves him stumbling around trying to regain his balance again. The old Yuri, the one that fell quiet but never really went away, is scratching at the walls he’s built. The old Yuri begs him to run. It’s not too late. You’re in love with him now, but it’s new. It can fade. If you leave now, it will hurt for a little while, but then the hurt will end and the world will shift back into its usual orbit.

 

               Yuri doesn’t want the world to shift back into its usual orbit. He likes his life like this.

 

               The burning feeling recedes. The iron bands around his lung loosen their grip. He can breathe again. His heart pounds in his ears and he feels numb.

 

               He loves Victor. He doesn’t _want_ to let that go. Yuri knows the odds of their relationship lasting are low. He knows he’s not special enough to inspire Victor to drop everything and stay by his side when their year is up. Knows he has responsibilities back home that he cannot and will not ignore.

 

               But he has Victor for now. Even though the old Yuri is chanting over and over again that it won’t be enough, it will never be enough. Yuri will always, always want more, he drowns it out.

 

               He has Victor now and he’s going to enjoy that for however long it lasts.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Whew. Another speedy update. I may have spent most of the day when not at work sequestered in the corner of a Starbucks shotgunning Frappachinos. Apparently, it helps me type faster.
> 
> Fair warning, but towards the end there are some vague descriptions of vomiting and general hungoverness. Nothing too bad, but it is there in case anyone is squicked out by it.

               May – Switzerland

 

               For the first time since the trip began, Yuri sits next to Victor on the plane to Zurich. It was roughly a six and a half hour journey as they have to stopover in Munich for two and a half hours since there aren’t any direct flights between the two airports, but Victor does not mind at all.

 

               He honestly can’t think of anywhere else he’d rather be.

 

               They watch movies together, sharing one pair of headphones. At one point as they are sitting in the terminal in Munich Yuri falls asleep. Victor arranges themselves so that Yuri’s lower half is lying on the bench, his head pillowed in Victor’s lap. He hums softly as he runs has fingers through Yuri’s soft hair.

 

               If it weren’t for Yurio making gagging noises in the background, it would be perfect.

 

               He hadn’t realized he’d been praying that this would finally be the time he was assigned to the same room as Yuri until his heart dropped when he saw the room assignments. Victor ended up paired with Guang Hong and Yuri got Leo. All together it wasn’t a terrible arrangement. It just wasn’t what he wanted.

 

               How was he supposed to get through the night now that he knew how it felt to curl up around Yuri's calming warmth?

 

               “ _Cheer up. You don’t have to deal with Yurio’s temper tantrums for the next few weeks like I do._ ” Chris pat Victor on the back. “ _Besides, don’t Leo and Guang Hong hang out together a lot? You’ll get plenty of alone time with your boyfriend. Remember to stay safe, my dear._ ”

 

               Before Victor could do so much as send him a glare, Chris was off, waving over his shoulder as he went.

 

               “What did he say?” Yuri ask. Victor sighed.

 

               He would rather let Yurio use him as a punching bag for a week than admit to Yuri what Chris had really said, so he went with a half-truth.

 

               “He just told me to cheer up. That sharing rooms with either Leo or Guang Hong isn’t as bad as having to share with Yurio.”

 

               Victor waits in fear that Yuri’s going to call his bluff. Logically, he knows Yuri only speaks Japanese, English, and some Thai, but he always feels more than a little nervous when Chris will say something like that right in front of him just on the off chance that Yuri has been secretly studying French all these months.

 

               Either Yuri still doesn’t know French, or he’s hiding it well because the other man simply shrugs and moves out of Victor’s grasp to retrieve his bags.

 

               Victor is unpacking his things, making small talk with Guang Hong as the Chinese man does the same when the explosion happens.

 

               “No, no, no, no, **FUCKING NO**!”

 

               Guang Hong looks terrified. Victor just rests his forehead in the palm of his hands. Surely Yurio should be over throwing a fit to end all fits whenever he gets a new roommate by now?

 

               Yuri and Phichit have already made it out to the hall by the time Victor convinces himself he might as well go have a look. Yurio and Chris are in the middle of a tense standoff down at the other end. Victor exchanges quick looks with Phichit and Yuri and the trio begin to approach slowly, as though they are too afraid of making any sudden movements that might set Yurio on them instead.

 

               Chris is shirtless… Which, might explain some of Yurio’s rage actually.

 

               “You are disgusting! I am _not_ sharing a room with you.” Yurio is furious, shoulders squared and trying to utilize every last centimeter afforded to him in order to intimidate Chris into backing down. It’s not working. “And put some damn clothes on! Don’t you have any shame?”

 

               “None at all, thanks for asking.” Chris wiggled his hips and Yurio’s face turned purple. If this were a cartoon, Victor was sure there would have been smoke coming out of his ears.

 

               “We have to save Chris’ life.” Victor whispered.

 

               “Why? This is hilarious.”

 

               Victor had to admit the other man had a point. It was kind of hilarious and Chris most certainly deserved it for something.

 

               “Phichit!” Yuri elbowed his friend in the side. “We like Chris. We don’t want him dead.”

 

               “Right, right. He is significantly less fun dead.” Phichit hops forward, the flurry of the movement catching Yurio’s attention from over Chris’ bare shoulder. “Chris! Yurio! Are we having another naked party?”

 

               “ **We’ve never had one to begin with!** ” Yurio was now so angry his English had apparently abandoned him. “ **What is up with all you people and refusing to keep your god damned clothes on!?** ”

 

               “That didn’t sound good.” Yuri murmurs and Victor shakes his head grimly. No one present needed him to translate to know that whatever Yurio had said was not full of sunshine and daisies. “Why can’t Phichit resist being an instigator for once in his life?”

 

               “I’m assuming for roughly the same reason Chris can’t.” Victor whispers back before straightening to his full height stepping forward, donning his favorite cheerful mask like a suit of armor. “Yurio! What’s going on out here? We’re going to have half the campus turning up to see the show if we aren’t careful.”

 

               It was true. Already heads were poking out of doors and there was a small crowd peering out of the stairwell down at the end of the halls as people from other floors began to search out the source of the commotion. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before the administration caught wind of this and turned up to have their own look. Victor wasn't entirely sure what they would do in this situation, but he did know it might not be a good idea to find out the hard way.

 

               “ **What’s going on out here is that this pervert started practicing stripping the second he got here.** ” Yurio was clearly still too angry to use his English. The rougher edges and guttural sounds were accented in his rage, making him sounds about three times tougher than he probably was. That might have been exactly what he was going for. “ **I’m not rooming with him. The others were bad enough, but this… This I am not going to fucking deal with.** ”

 

               “ **That sounds fair.** ” Yurio’s eyes widened in surprise and then instantly narrowed again as he looked at Victor in suspicion. “ **Trade rooms with one of us. No strings. Just trying to make sure no one gets arrested for murder or public indecency. Whichever might come first.** ”

 

               Yurio stood there fuming for about thirty seconds before deflating like a balloon. “Fine. Who am I switching with, then?”

 

               “I’d offer, but I’m rooming with JJ this time around and I don’t think we need a repeat of Korea.” Phichit crossed his arms over his chest and leant against the nearby wall, less excited now that there was no longer the promise of drama.

 

               “I’ll switch with him!” Victor hadn’t even realized Guang Hong had followed him out into the hall. The Chinese man still looked scared, but his voice didn’t waver. “I’m supposed to be with Victor, but I don’t mind sharing with Chris instead.”

 

               “Perfect! That’s a splendid idea!” Victor clapped his hands together and forced himself to keep his cheery smile in place. Rooming with Yurio wouldn’t be so bad. He’d basically already done it once when Yurio had camped on the floor of the dorm room he’d been sharing with Otabeck in Korea after the whole JJ thing. “Come on, let’s get everyone’s things switched around then.”

 

               Yurio grunted but stomped into the room, grabbed his things, and stomped back down the hall, slamming the door to his new room with enough force to shake the walls.

 

               “ _Why do I get the feeling you did this on purpose?_ ” Victor let some of his false cheer drain from his body.

 

               “ _Who? Me? My friend, you wound me with your accusations!_ ” Chris had a hand over his heart and his eyes were wide. If Victor didn’t know him any better, he would have said the other man made the perfect picture of innocence.

 

               Too bad Victor did know better.

 

               “Well, that was exciting.” Phichit pushed himself up off the wall. “It was so exciting, I’ve worked up an appetite. Chris, is there anywhere good around here to eat?”

 

               “Ah, yes, there is this lovely little place a few streets over. They have a wine selection to die for…”

 

               Victor and Yuri exchanged a tired look. If this was how things were going to start out, this was going to be one hell of a long month.

 

~

 

               It was noon the next day and Yuri, Phichit, and Chris were in a small coffee shop enjoying a light lunch before heading out to try and find a decent study space when Yuri’s phone rang.

 

               He glanced down to see his sister’s name. A brief second was all it took for him to calculate the time distance. It was noon in Zurich which meant it was eight in the evening in Hasetsu. They would be just about through the first half of the dinner rush and Mari would be settling down into the tiny room behind the kitchen that she used as her office to do some work before going out and tending bar for the rest of the evening.

 

               “[Hello, Mari. Can you hang on for just a second?]” Yuri answered the call and moved to get to his feet. Victor reached out and squeezed his wrist with a smile before letting him go. Yuri felt his face turn hot, but he smiled warmly before he walked away. It would have been rude to talk on the phone at the table after all. He stepped outside and found a place in the sunshine to sit.

 

               “[Okay. I’m here. Is everything okay?]”

 

               “[Everything’s fine. Business is great. Mom misses you. Told me to tell you ‘hello’.]” Yuri felt a flash of guilt. He’s been so caught up in Victor he hadn’t been calling or texting home as often as he should have. His mother would be busy now, but he made a mental note to try and call her tomorrow. “[I told her not to worry. You’ve been having a good time, haven’t you? That’s why you haven’t called?]”

 

               “[Yes, I’m enjoying everything so far. I’m sorry for not calling more often. Between classes and traveling, I haven’t had a lot of spare time.]” That wasn’t the whole truth, but Mari didn’t need to know the full scope of the distraction that was Victor Nikiforov.

 

               Sometimes Yuri forgot Mari knew him so well it was like she could read his mind.

 

               “[How’s Victor?]”

 

               Yuri froze, the guilt from before coming back three times over.

 

               Mari laughed.

 

               “[Ah, ha! Got you, little brother.]” Yuri groaned and buried his face in his free hand, now more grateful than ever he had decided to take this call outside. Phichit knew Japanese and would never let him live it down. “[I told you there was something there, didn’t I? Oh, no, you didn’t want to listen to your big sister then.]”

 

               “[I don’t want to listen to you now, either.]” Yuri grumbled. Mari had always enjoyed teasing him, though. He knew her well enough to know she wouldn’t take his comment seriously. “[Is that why you called? To interrogate me about Victor?]”

 

               “[No, but that is a bonus.]” He could picture her now, crammed behind her too big desk, phone pressed to her ear, legs crossed. She’d probably have a cigarette tucked behind her ear, the bleached blonde tips of her hair brushing against it as she threw her head back and laughed. Yuri was suddenly hit with an overwhelming wave of homesickness, the likes of which he hadn’t felt since his panic attack in Korea. “[Before we get down to business, how are the two of you? Has he made any headway in getting you to notice him?]”

 

               “[You could say that…]” Mari gasped on the other end of the line and Yuri finally removed his face from his hand in favor of leaning it back to rest against the sun-warmed bricks behind him. “[I know I should have called to tell you sooner, but we’re kind of dating now I guess.]”

 

               “[You guess? You don’t know?]” Mari let out a huff of air in disbelief. “[How do you not know if you are dating him or not? Do I have to fly out there and knock some sense into you? Because you know I’ll do it.]”

 

               “[Please don’t.]” Yuri knew she was kidding. Well, he was pretty sure she was kidding, at least. “[I am dating him. Somehow. Sometimes I’m pretty convinced this whole year has been just one big fever dream.]”

 

               “[I’m happy for you, little brother.]” She did sound happy. She always had supported him, no matter what it was he was doing with his life. In that, she was the best sister he could have ever had. “[I tried to tell you. He looked at you like you hung the very stars in the sky. I get the feeling it wouldn’t have been easy to shake him even if you wanted to. Not that it looked like you wanted to.]”

 

               “[But, just in case, give him a message from me. Let him know that if he hurts my little brother I will make sure he wishes he’d never been born.]”

 

               “[You know I’m not telling him that.]” Yuri stated blandly.

 

               “[Fine, fine. I’ll tell him myself the next time I see him.]” When Mari was going to see Victor again, Yuri didn’t know. It wasn’t like they were going to be able to continue this after the end of the year, but he didn’t mention it. It was nice to think about Mari seeing Victor again, giving him the shovel talk as though this were a viable relationship he was allowed to keep instead of a last year of university fling. “[As much as you love teasing me about my love life, that can’t be the only reason you called.]”

 

               “[Right. To business. That investment firm you turned me onto sent over another round of amended contracts for us to review. I’ve emailed them to you. There’s a section about midway through I’ve marked that I want you to go over really quickly before I send it over to the lawyers…]”

 

               Their conversation didn’t last much longer. They discussed a few other aspects of the business, mostly things Mari handled on her own anyway, but always felt like she needed to share with Yuri as they were supposed to be full partners once he graduated. After about ten minutes they exchanged goodbyes and Yuri tucked his phone back into his pocket with a tired sigh.

 

               He turned his head so that he could see in through the large windows of the café.

 

               Phichit and Chris were huddled over Phichit’s phone, pointing and laughing at whatever was on it. Victor was watching with polite interested, although Yuri could tell his mind was elsewhere. As he watched, Victor turned his head and, as though sensing Yuri’s stare, he made eye contact with him through the window, face splitting into that adorable heart-shaped grin he got when really excited about something.

 

               Yuri’s stomach twisted into knots and his heart slammed against his ribs.

 

               [He looked at you like you hung the very stars in the sky.]

 

               That’s what Mari had said. Yuri had dismissed the comment. Victor liked him, yes, even in his most stubborn moments Yuri couldn’t deny that at this point. Just because Victor liked him didn’t mean he had fallen so deep.

 

               ‘Mari’s right.’ His traitorous brain whispered from the back of his mind. ‘Look at him. Stars in his eyes.’

 

               ‘You don’t deserve him.’

 

               Yuri knew that was the anxiety talking. He shoved it down. True, he didn’t deserve Victor. That much had always been obvious.

 

               He didn’t deserve Victor, but Victor wanted him anyway. Knowing that made it easy to shove down the insecurity that was desperately trying to take root in his chest. He didn’t have the right to choose who Victor wanted to be with. He didn’t get the right to dictate Victor’s feelings.

 

               So long as Victor wanted him, he was going to be there, whether his stupid anxiety wanted him to or not.

 

~

 

               “Yuri! It’s my birthday, Yuri! Take a drink. Take a drink for me!”

 

               "Your birthday was two days ago."

 

               "I know, but we're celebrating it now, so that still counts! Please drink with me?"

 

               They hadn’t even left dinner yet and half the group was already three sheets to the winds. Victor watched in blatant amusement as Phichit wrapped his arms around Yuri and began rocking him back and forth.

 

               At this rate, none of their livers were going to survive to the end of the year.

 

               “N-No, that’s fine. I’m fine. I don’t really want to…” Yuri was stammering, but he didn’t try to push his friend off of him. After witnessing an inebriated Phichit three times at this point, Victor had come to the conclusion that the Thai man transformed into an octopus once a certain level of alcohol intake had been reached as he seemed to have the constant urge to latch onto the nearest warm body at all times. “Come on, Phichit. No one wants a repeat of Chris’ party.”

 

               “Victor does!” Chris was also several drinks in and louder than usual, which was saying something as he was not a generally quiet person. “I do, too, but my opinion doesn’t count. You know, since you’re taken and all.”

 

               “I have just now discovered it is possible to die of embarrassment without the assistance of alcohol. In fact, I think I’m going to stay sober to continue to test this theory out, but thank you for thinking of me.” Yuri has now pried his friend’s fingers from where they were clasped around his neck and looks around frantically for a moment, before shoving Phichit away from him and onto Guang Hong, who was unfortunate enough to be sitting on Phichit’s other side this evening.

 

               “He’s not wrong, though. I wouldn’t mind seeing you cut loose a bit.” Victor launched his arms around Yuri in order to take up the place Phichit had just been forcibly vacated from. He nuzzled into the space where Yuri’s neck met his shoulders and whispered the next words directly into his ear. Yuri was much better about Victor hanging off him these day, so Victor was fairly confident he wasn’t about to get evicted, too. “I would love to see you dance again, Yuri… But only if you want to, of course.”

 

               Victor leant back some in order to see Yuri’s face. He was deep in thought, conflicting emotions running across it too quickly for Victor to place any of them. He held his breath. Remembers waking up on the floor in Korea with his arms empty and aching for the one person that kept running from him. He never wanted to go back to that time again. So if Yuri said he didn’t want to drink, Victor would step back.

 

               But if he did… Well, Victor wouldn’t have known unless he tried.

 

               Yuri’s face stills. It is unreadable, but determined. Victor feels his heart pick up its pace in his chest.

 

               “Fine, but I have a few conditions.”

 

               Phichit squeals in delight. Guang Hong and Leo, who have also had more than a few too many, cheer. Seung-Gil shakes his head and rolls his eyes. Chris does this weird shimmy that Victor supposed is intended to come off as sexy, but mostly makes it look like he needs to pee. Yurio groans and slams his head on the table, rubbing his face against the wood grain as Otabeck rubs comforting circles into his back.

 

               “Conditions are fine. Great, actually! Conditions are the best. I love conditions!” Okay, so Victor might have had more than he thought he’d had. He had started nuzzling into Yuri’s neck again and he paused, pulling back once more.  He had to learn the rules. If he didn’t then Yuri would be mad at him in the morning. Might even go back to ignoring him. Victor couldn’t let that happen. “What are the conditions?”

 

               “First, no matter how good of an idea it seems to me at the time, do not, under any circumstances, let me take my clothes off.” Yuri is deadly serious and Victor feels himself sober up some as he focused his entire attention on his boyfriend. “I don’t care how much I whine, or cry, or tell you it’s okay. Even if I say sober me will totally understand. Do. Not. Let. Me. Do. It.”

 

               “Thank fucking god.” Yurio raises his head up from the table. “That is a condition I would be happy to help with.”

 

               “What if sober you _would_ totally understand?” Phichit is still hanging off Guang Hong, but he’s more or less stopped moving now and he is currently staring at Yuri with pouting puppy eyes.

 

               “Sober me will not understand. Trust me.” Yuri shoots Phichit a warning glance that goes mostly ignored. “Second, the minute it looks like I might try to head for the nearest stage or raised surface, someone stop me. I don’t care if you have to tackle me and tie me down to do it. No matter how hard I fight, no more exhibitionism.”

 

               “Don’t worry, Beka and I have got your back.” Yurio looks more cheerful. Maybe all he needed was a purpose to draw him out of his funk. Even if that purpose runs counter to every goal Victor could have in mind for where tonight could take drunk Yuri. This is fine. Victor has the rest of his life to get Yuri back up on a pole again. He can be patient.

 

               “If it helps, I won’t be drinking this evening. The place hosting the show has requested my services as a DJ. I’ll keep an eye out.” Otabeck promises.

 

               “How do you always end up working wherever we go?” Leo asks. “Don’t you ever just want to hang out without having to spin?”

 

               “Not particularly.” Otabeck shrugs. “I like doing it, and I’m trying to expand my international brand. Anywhere that will let me work is another check I can add to my resume and another tuition payment I can put in my bank account.”

 

               “Makes sense to me.” Victor returned to burying his face in Yuri’s neck, humming happily as Yuri accepted a drink Chris was handing him.

 

               “You know, I’ve never said it before, but I’m glad my birthday was in early January before I really knew you guys.” Guang Hong is patting Phichit on the head hesitantly as the other man is now singing softly in Thai while rocking the both of them back and forth. “Something tells me four of these parties in as many months might have killed us.”

 

               “I would have to agree.” Victor grinned, tightening his grip on Yuri as his boyfriend took another sip from his drink.

 

               Tonight was going to be so much fun.

 

~

 

               While the night had definitely been fun, the morning was much less so.

 

               “Yuri… I’m dying…”

 

               “Victor, shut the fuck up. Please. I’m begging you.”

 

               “You don’t even want to hear my last words?”

 

               “Victor…. I love you, but right now every word you say is like a hammer against my skull. If you don’t stop talking, I’m going to vomit again and I do not want to do that. I don’t think there’s anything left.”

 

               They had both shoved themselves into the tiny bathroom in Yuri and Leo’s room. Victor had been the first to wake and the sounds of him forcibly removing everything from his stomach had woken Yuri as well. Since the toilet was occupied, he’d made due by throwing up in the shower.

 

               Then he’d proceeded to curl up on the floor with a towel over his head while Victor continued to hug the toilet bowl as though his life depended on it. For all he knew, it probably did.

 

               Victor was about to groan in agreement and maybe end up trying to throw up his own stomach lining again for good measure when Yuri’s words hit his brain hard enough to give him momentary mental whiplash.

 

               “You love me?”

 

               “What?” Yuri lifted the edge of the towel just enough so that one bleary eye became visible. “What are you talking about?”

 

               “You just said you love me.” The gears in Victor’s head were starting to painfully squeal to life. He still felt nauseous and the brass band at the base of his skull was still going full tilt, but his thoughts were clearing up and coming into focus.

 

               “No I didn’t.”

 

               Victor frowned, pushing himself up against the toilet so that he had a better view of the white lump that constituted Yuri’s head and the sole eye he could see.

 

               “Yes, you did.”

 

               Yuri lifts the towel up higher so that both of his eyes are visible. Even though Victor can’t see his mouth, he can tell the other man is frowning, cheek still pressing firmly into the cool tile beneath him. There is a thin sheen of sweat across Yuri’s brow and his skin is pale under its tanned tone.

 

               After a minute of silence, Yuri gasps softly, dropping the towel back over his face and grabbing the back of his head with both hands.

 

               “Shit. I did.”

 

               It was too bad even the thought of movement made Victor’s stomach clench in a very clear warning because right now the only thing he wanted to do was grab Yuri and kiss him over and over again.

 

               A silence descended over them. Seconds ticked away into minutes. Victor could barely breath, his mind sluggish as he tried to sort through the flashes of feelings that were sparking off throughout his body.

 

               Yuri said he loved him.

 

               He was hungover though, not really thinking about the words before they had come out of his mouth. He clearly hadn’t even recognized he’d said it after the words had left his lips. Had he even meant it? If the pain in his own brain was anything to go off, it was entirely possible Yuri would have said anything to get Victor to shut up and leave him alone. Surely, he could not have _meant_ it?

 

               Yes. Yes, Victor was sure he had, though. He’d said the words without thinking, which meant they had come from somewhere. Perhaps hiding behind Yuri’s filter the same way they had been hiding behind Victor’s. The pain in his head and the sickness in his body had removed those filters even if just for the briefest of moments, allowing Victor to take a peek through the curtains Yuri always kept firmly shut.

 

               The racing of his own heart was making him dizzy. He slumped back down to rest his head on the lip of the toilet again, hoping the chill from the porcelain would help ease the pounding behind his eyes enough so that he could remember how to speak.

 

               It didn’t help.

 

               He had to say something. He stared blankly down at his trembling hands as though they could somehow help him muster up the strength to say something before the moment got away from him. Victor had a little time. It wasn’t like either of them were going to be physically capable of moving anytime soon, but the longer he let the silence stretch on the more he swore he could hear the internal screaming that was going on inside Yuri’s mind.

 

               Say something, Victor. Quickly. Before Yuri’s anxiety can lead him to believe the worst and convincing him you mean it becomes all the more difficult because of it.

 

               “I love you.”

 

               Yuri snorted and rolled over with a groan. When he spoke, his voice was muffled by the towel that was still draped over his head.

 

               “Are you still drunk?”

 

               “God, I wish I was. If I were still drunk I wouldn’t feel like I was about to die.” Victor had known Yuri wouldn’t accept his words at face value. Yuri always had to push everyone away at first while he internalized things. He had to sort though it within the safety of his own mind, examine whatever happened from every angle before he felt comfortable fashioning a true response. That, at least, was something Victor had finally learned. Patience was the key here. Patience and persistence. “I’m not just saying it because you said it. I’ve been wanting to for a long time now.”

 

               It was the truth. He’d loved Yuri since far before it could have been considered appropriate. Fallen hard for a stranger he’d met by chance before he’d even known they had a shared language or a common thread.

 

               His friends were right. He was a sap.

 

               “Am _I_ still drunk?”

 

               “I don’t know. Are you?”

 

               Victor watches Yuri’s chest rise as fall as he takes several deep breaths.

 

               The silence stretches on.

 

               “No. No, I don’t think I am.”

 

               Another pause.

 

               “Am I dreaming?”

 

               “Why on earth would you want to dream about being this hungover?” Victor couldn’t help the note of disbelief that crept into his voice. Yuri offered up a strangled chuckle.

 

               “Fair enough.” Finally, the towel comes off his face and Yuri squints up at the ceiling. “I’m not drunk and I’m not dreaming. That must mean this is real.”

 

               “It would seem so.”

 

               “Shit.”

 

               Yuri digs the heels of his hands into his eyes and curls his legs up so that his bare feet are planted firmly against the floor, knees raised. They are both still wearing their clothes from the night before and Yuri’s jeans are wrinkled and twisted around his hips. Victor risks releasing his death grip on the toilet so that he can have a spare hand to push back his own silver bangs, wincing as they stick to the dried sweat on his forehead.

 

               Yuri lets out one last deep breath and removed his hands, tilting his head to the side and finally looking Victor full in the face.

 

               “We’re never going to get the flowers and romance thing down, are we?”

 

               “Doesn’t look like it.”

 

               Yuri bites his bottom lip. Chews on it for a minute. Struggles to sit up and then seems to think the better of it.

 

               Victor takes pity on him and offers a way out.

 

               “I meant it. I really did. But we should save this conversation for a time when we’re both a bit more lucid, huh?”

 

               Yuri nods his head gingerly.

 

               “That… Would be a good idea.”

 

               Victor takes the compromise. He knows he is right. They need to be more lucid, more in control of themselves. More capable of acting on their emotions instead of merely being able to lie there like limp noodles.

 

               Now that Victor knows how Yuri feels, he’ll take all the time in the world if that’s what is needed.

 

               If Yuri wants him to say it again with flowers and romance, then flowers and romance are what he’ll do.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Posting this a little later than I wanted to, but I've been neglecting my sleep schedule and it hit me in a big way last night... Like in an I went unconscious for 12 hours kind of way. Oops.
> 
> Anyways, now that Victor and Yuri are moving right along, time to delve a bit more into the other characters! Despite the lengthiness of this so far, we are really just shy of the halfway mark for the year!

May – Switzerland

 

               “ _Chris, my dear, I need your help._ ” Victor burst into Chris’ room and promptly draped himself over his friend’s shoulders where the Swiss man was hunched over his desk working on a paper. He waved at Guang Hong as he went, the Chinese man waving back from his spot on his own bed without even bothering to remove his headphones.

 

               “ _Victor, perfect timing! I was just looking for an excuse to abandon this hellish paper and here you are!_ ” Chris did not hesitated to close his laptop with a firm click and push the wheeled chair away from the desk, causing Victor to stumble in order to maintain his hug and not fall flat on his ass at the same time. “ _You are like my own personal genie. Granting wishes before I can even think them into being._ ”

 

               “ _Come with me, love. The café you showed us on Monday should be the perfect place for a confession._ ” Victor released Chris and winked as the other man got to his feet.

 

               “ _Ah, yes. Caffeine would do us wonders, I agree. And a confession, too? Color me intrigued._ ” Chris slipped into his shoes and grabbed his wallet, stuffing it into his pocket as he turned to Guang Hong, who hadn’t even looked up from the text book he was highlighting. “Guang Hong, we’re going to the café around the corner. I’m not sure how long we’ll be, but did you want me to bring you anything back for you?”

 

               “Hm?” Guang Hong removed one of his earbuds and Chris repeated the question. “Oh, no. That’s fine. I’m meeting Seung-Gil and Leo for lunch in like an hour. I probably won’t be here when you get back. Thank you for asking.”

 

               They waved goodbye and made their way across the campus. It was a beautiful morning. Springtime in Switzerland was warmer than Victor had been expecting and they’d had nothing but sunny days so far, although there were reports of rain later in the weekend.

 

               Victor kept the conversation on neutral terms as they made their way to their destination. He wanted to wait until they were settled before saying what was on his mind. It was now Friday, two days since Phichit’s birthday celebration and Victor was still feeling a bit sluggish and jittery.

 

               It didn’t take long for them to order and be served, choosing to sit in the window so that the sun’s rays could keep them warm and comfortable. Victor occupied himself with stirring a pack of sugar into his latte. Usually he liked his coffee black, but the expresso here was a bit bitter for his tastes and the sugar helped make it a bit more palatable.

 

               “Am I right to assume your confession ties into your request for my help?” Chris blew across the top of his own latte, something sweet and full of chocolate from what Victor had been able to gather, before taking a shallow sip. “You have been in a strange mood since Wednesday morning. I was wondering what that was about. Is Yuri okay?”

 

               “Yuri’s fine.” Victor waved off his friend’s concern. “We’re both fine. Better than ever you might say.”

 

               Chris gave him a look that showed he didn’t quite believe him. “If that is so, then why the odd mood? Or the urgent request for assistance?”

 

               “The request for assistance is merely because I want a recommendation for somewhere to take Yuri this weekend. Somewhere nice. Fancy, if you will.” Victor takes a taste of his drink. It’s still bitter, but not bad enough to want to get up and acquire another sugar packet. It’ll do. “I think it is high time I took him on that romantic date I’ve been promising.”

 

               “Excellent. That I can certainly assist with.” Chris’ eyes sparkled with excitement. “Let me call around, see if I can pull a few favors. If you are willing to postpone your date from this weekend and wait until we go visit my family next week, I think I know the perfect place.”

 

               Victor thinks it over. He’d wanted something sooner. He was itching to give Yuri the night of his life, culminated by Victor confessing his love in the manner Yuri deserved. If he needed to, he could be patient, though. He wanted it to be perfect and he trusted Chris more than anyone would know the best place to go.

 

               “Sounds like a plan. Thanks, Chris.”

 

               “No need to thank me. You’d do the same if the positions were swapped.” Chris taps a finger against his chin as he stares expectantly at Victor. “Now, I do believe you said you had a confession to go along with your favor….?”

 

               Victor felt warmth bubbling up inside his chest as he smiled.

 

               “Yuri told me he loved me!”

 

               The words came tumbling out of his mouth in a rush. Even after two days, he still couldn’t believe it. Still couldn’t wrap his mind around the fact that this was happening to him. That Yuri shared his feelings.

 

               “What? When? How?” Chris almost dropped his drink. “I need details! All the details! Like from the clothes you were both wearing to the look on his face when he said it. Don’t hold out on me.”

 

               “Well, I couldn’t see his face at the time since he had a towel over it…”

 

               Victor pauses, watching as Chris takes a moment to process this information. He is now looking equal parts confused and amused.

 

               “Why did he have a towel on his face when he told you he loves you?” Chris asked hesitantly, almost as though he was afraid to know the answer.

 

               “According to him, it was necessary because the fluorescent lighting was so bright he felt like his eyes were catching on fire.”

 

               “Oh… That makes sense.”

 

               “We were hungover. I’m sure he truly felt like he was in danger of losing his eyes to spontaneous combustion at the time.” Victor shrugged. “ _That’s_ why I need to make sure the next time we confess our undying love and devotion to each other that it’s perfect! Because this time it definitely was not.”

 

               “You know, for someone who thrives on romantic fantasies, you really do have a penchant for making headway in the most unromantic situations with this boy.”

 

               Victor exhales sharply and rubs the fingers of his right hand against his temple. What can he say? Chris is right.

 

               “That’s why I have to do this. Yuri has to know I mean it, that I’m committed to this.” Victor can feel his mind settling like a steel trap around his determination, assisting to bolster his resolve. “That I’m committed to him. I don’t want him second-guessing where my feelings are concerned. I owe him better than that. Better than a dirty bathroom while experiencing what had to have been the world’s worst hangover.”

 

               “You poor thing.” Chris clucks his tongue and leans back in his seat. “Trust me, we’ll set you up right this time. Yuri won’t know what hit him by the time you’re done with him. In a good way, of course.”

 

               “About that… What exactly did you have in mind?”

 

               “So there’s this quaint little chalet a friend of mine owns in the Alps…”

 

~

 

               “I still don’t understand why everything around here is in German.” Yurio grouses as he glares at the menu in front of him like it has personally offended him by not being written in the language he expected it to be. “Shouldn’t it be in French?”

 

               “Switzerland actually has four officially recognized languages, but German is the most common. It’s spoken by roughly 63% of the population, especially in Zurich.” Yuri rattles off this fact as though it were something everyone should just be casually familiar with. Victor is not in the slightest bit surprised when Yuri throws out random cultural trivia any longer. He’s probably the only reason anyone in their study group is passing their Cultural Studies class. “French is only the second most common language spoken here.”

 

               “Then why doesn’t Chris speak German?” Yurio shoots back.

 

               “I do, a little. Enough to get around that is. I wouldn’t exactly say I’m fluent.” Chris says calmly. Victor looks at his friend out of the corner of his eye. Where the Swiss man had been all bubbles and sunshine over the weekend, as the week drug on and they came closer and closer to the day they were supposed to go visit Chris’ family, his mood was subtly changing. Not enough that someone who didn’t know him well would notice, but it was definitely there if you knew where to look. Victor just couldn't figure out why, and Chris hadn't said. At least not yet. “I’m from just outside of Sierre in the Valais region. West Switzerland. It’s the French side of the country. My mother is from France actually. She met my father here, in Zurich, on holiday one summer.”

 

               “Is that where we’re going Friday? Sierre?” Leo asks. He had his phone out and is typing in phrases from off the menu into a translation app.

 

               “Yes, have I not mentioned that before?” Chris asks and when most of those gathered around the table nods he lets out a soft grunt. “Ah, I’m sorry. That’s is where we are going. There’s isn’t enough space at my parents to house us all comfortably for a long weekend, but a family friend owns a chalet not too far from there. They’ve agreed to let us use it this weekend.”

 

               Victor knew this. Apparently, it is the thing to do to own a chalet in the mountains, because the little place Chris had located for Victor to spirit Yuri away to is not far from the larger place the others will be staying at and owned by a completely different family friend. Victor just hopes it’s far enough away to put the others out and sight and out of mind.

 

               The last thing he wants is another interruption, after all.

 

               He still can’t wait until the weekend. He hadn’t told Yuri anything yet, as he wanted it all to be a surprise, but keeping the secret was harder than he anticipated it would be. Every time Yuri would hug him, or kiss him, or look up at Victor with those wide, brown eyes, it had been an intense struggle not to throw himself at his boyfriend’s feet and tell him everything.

 

               Either that or kidnap him right then and there and drag him away early.

 

               “We aren’t going to have another party while we’re there, are we?” Guang Hong looks a bit green around the gills as he asks this question. To be fair, he’d had it particularly rough the last time around. With Yuri kept firmly under wraps, it was apparently Guang Hong’s turn to shine and show off his exhibitionist side.

 

               Apparently, Yuri wasn’t the only one who was familiar with burlesque type dancing.

 

               Victor and Phichit now had a side bet about when Seung-Gil was going to crack and let it go completely, as it seemed that reserved Asians in their group, while under the influence of alcohol, had a habit of going wild.

 

               “We’re going to die if we have another party.” Yuri’s face turns pale and Victor knows he is remembering the long Wednesday they had spent holding each other’s hair back and the torturous two hour lecture every single one of them had to sit through that afternoon so as not to affect their attendance in the Cultural Studies class. At least Victor had been able to wear sunglasses to help hide form the bright lights and make it seem like he wasn't sleeping through class. With Yuri’s prescription, he’d have to have special lenses to do the same, and there hadn’t exactly been time to locate an optometrist before they’d been due to be in class. “I think my liver is going to take out a restraining order on me if I ever drink that much again.”

 

               “Forget your liver, I think my stomach attempted to escape my body last time.” Yurio flinched at the memory. “Not to mention the fact that I still have to bleach my brain eventually to get rid of those memories of Guang Hong’s strip tease.”

 

               “Hey, now, I thought Guang Hong looked great up there. In fact, the whole place seemed pretty into it.” Phichit quickly leapt to the defense of his friend. “I mean, the bouncers didn’t look too happy about it, but they get paid to make sure people don’t rush the stage so they may have been biased.”

 

               “We could have gone to _jail_.” Yurio scoffed.

 

               “Yeah, but we didn’t.” Otabeck pointed out blandly. “I had a good time.”

 

               “We all had a good time.” Victor chirped. “It was the after that sucked.”

 

               Although, searing pain aside, the after hadn’t been all that bad for Victor since it had made Yuri accidentally confess his feelings. Victor still felt a rush run through his brain every time he remembered the moment.

 

               Not that Yuri had brought it up again. Excitement about his plans for the weekend aside, Victor wasn’t sure if that was a bad thing or not. It was fairly typical Yuri, though. In their ongoing dance they would take turns leading, after all. Yuri was probably just waiting for Victor to follow through with what he’d promised.

 

               Now he was getting impatient again.

 

               “You know, if you wanted something a little more risqué, you could have told me. I would have found something else.” Chris winked and Guang Hong looked like he was trying to melt into his seat. Either that or he was about to slide under the table and curl up there for the rest of his life. “There was no need to amend the regularly scheduled show.”

 

               “Leave him alone.” Of course, Yuri would be the one to come to Guang Hong’s rescue. Victor remembered the detailed description of Yuri’s shame spiral that Phichit had finally been prodded to give him one day. Yuri had plenty of firsthand experience with the situation the Chinese man had found himself in. “We’ve all had our less than stellar moments this year. No need to bring them up over and over again.”

 

               “I still can’t fucking believe that every time we go out, someone ends up stripping.” Yurio makes a gagging noise in the back of his throat. “There is something seriously wrong with the whole lot of you. Nasty fucks.”

 

               “Just wait, Yurio. It’ll be you doing it, too, one of these days. We’re a very, very bad influence, or so I’ve heard.” Victor couldn’t help but tease, even as his shifted his legs under the table in order to dodge the kick he knew was coming his way.

 

               He dodged a little too well if the yelp of pain that comes from Yuri is any indication.

 

               “Shit. I’m sorry. I was aiming for your idiot.” Yurio does look sorry and Yuri waves it off as he bends over to rub his shin. “I’ll get him later.”

 

               “It’s fine.” Victor notices that Yuri doesn’t bother to correct where Yurio has called Victor his idiot. As much as he doesn’t enjoy being insulted in general, he has to admit he wouldn’t mind being called anything at all so long as that thing is Yuri’s.

 

               Now he really can’t wait for the weekend. These next two days were going to be pure torture.

 

~

 

               “Are you feeling alright?” Phichit blinked as though he was drawing himself out of a deep well of thought and looked up at Yuri, squinting as Yuri was standing with the sun at his back. Yuri waited until the Thai man shrugged and shifted over to make more room.

 

               Taking the motion as an invitation, Yuri sank down onto the bench next to Phichit. He’d been studying with Victor in the common room when the need for coffee had hijacked his brain. Victor had been deep in the middle of a major exam that had a two hour time limit, so Yuri had gone alone. He hadn’t gotten far; however, as he’d seen Phichit slumped down on a bench in one of the quads, shoulders hunched and forearms resting on his knees as he stared blankly at the ground.

 

               “I’m fine.” Phichit sat up so that he was no longer hunched over. He turned to look at Yuri with his usual bright smile plastered on his face. Yuri wasn’t sure if he was imagining it or not, but for a split second it was almost as though the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Just feeling a little out of sorts. Might be trying to come down with some kind of bug. I’m pretty impressed none of us have gotten sick yet with all the traveling and closer quarters. This was bound to happen eventually.”

 

               “Are you sure?” Yuri knew he wasn’t good at reading people and he knew Phichit often used that to his advantage. Never in a mean way. Usually just when he was feeling uncharacteristically down and didn’t want Yuri to worry about him. Yuri hoped this was not one of those times.

 

               Although he did look a bit pale. Maybe he was sick after all?

 

               “I’m sure.” This time Phichit’s smile did reach his eyes and Yuri felt himself relax a fraction. Yuri was probably worrying over nothing. He did tend to do that from time to time. “Honestly, I’m sure there’s a clinic or something on campus. If I don’t feel better in the morning I’ll go get some medicine and then I’ll be right as rain before you know it. Wouldn’t want to miss our trip tomorrow, right?”

 

               “Okay, then.” Yuri’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He took it out and saw Victor’s name pop up on his screen. He placed his index finger over the home key to deactivate the fingerprint lock and typed out a quick response.

 

               “That the boyfriend?” Phichit asked, leaning over a bit in an attempt to see what Yuri was typing. He covered the screen with his other hand and hit send quickly before Phichit could crane his neck further to see around it.

 

               “Yes, I’ve been gone for a bit longer than he thought I would be. Just wanted to make sure I didn’t get lost.” Yuri explained. “Like I’m the one that gets lost wherever we go.”

 

               “I still can’t understand how he got lost in the middle of St. Petersburg.” Phichit chuckled lightly and shook his head. “You’d think after living there his whole life, he’d know the bus stops a bit better. At least you and Google Maps were there to make sure we got back safely.”

 

               “I get the feeling he doesn’t pay much attention to his surroundings at times.”

 

               “More like whenever you are around.” Phichit teased as he elbowed Yuri gently in the ribs. Yuri smirked and elbowed him back. “Who can blame him when his such a handsome boyfriend attached to his hip all the time? Do you need to get back to him?”

 

               “No, we can function perfectly fine on our own.” Yuri’s phone buzzed again and he glanced at the text preview on his lock screen before shoving the device back into his pocket. He did not deem a string of frowny faces and broken heart emojis to be worth a response. “Besides, he’s taking a test and, as you just pointed out, I tend to be a distraction for him.”

 

               “A welcome distraction, but I get where you’re coming from.” Phichit takes out his own phone, wraps an arm around Yuri’s shoulder and holds the device out in front of them. “Park bench selfie?”

 

               “Go ahead.”

 

               As soon Phichit gets a shot he deems good enough and posts it to Instagram they settle back into their separate sides of the bench.

 

               “You’ve been talking to Mari a lot lately. Is everything okay back home?”

 

               Of course, Phichit would have noticed that. He had always been more perceptive than anyone else.

 

               “Everything’s fine. We’re just working on a big deal with a foreign investment firm. Since that’s kind of my major, she’s been asking for my advice.” Yuri fidgets in his seat. “Sometimes I think she forgets I don’t have any real experience yet. University is great and all, but it’s basically entirely theoretical. It’s sooner than we planned, but she seems to be excited about the opportunity to go through with our ideas for starting something outside of Japan.”

 

               “Oh! That’s exciting. And stop being so down on yourself. You are knocking it out of the park with this whole foreign relations thing so far. You navigate around better that the so called locals half the time.” Phichit nudges Yuri with his knee and Yuri nudges back, his friend’s excitement for him compounding against his own and pushing back the tangle of nerves that always comes with thinking about their plans for expansion. “Do you have any place in particular in mind yet?”

 

               “We have a few locations we’re discussing, but nothing concrete as of now.” Yuri bites his bottom lip. He knows he's being purposefully vague, but he can't help it. Even though he would trust Phichit with his life, the last thing he wanted was for rumors to start or for people to get their hopes up. “I think Mari will let me loop you in soon. She didn’t want to do it before the first round of contracts were out of the way. No point getting you excited about a project that might not even happen.”

 

               “Don’t mind me. You didn’t even have to offer me a job in the first place.” Phichit hugs Yuri before he can protest that statement. “Don’t say it. I know you wouldn’t have offered if I don’t deserve it. I’m an amazing person. I’ll be a perfect media liaison. Blah, blah, blah.”

 

               “It’s the truth.”

 

               “I know it’s the truth. I’m perfect and you are damn lucky to have me.” They both laugh and the last bit of doubt circling at the back of Yuri’s mind melts away. Phichit’s fine. Nothing to worry about.

 

               “You really are, you know. I’m not just making that up.”

 

               “I know, I know. Come on, let’s go get that coffee before Victor sends out a search party to come find you.”

 

               “You don’t think he would really do that, do you?”

 

               “I think we both know that he most certainly would.”

 

~

 

               Victor hummed to himself as he packed his overnight bag for the weekend. Every time he thought of his plans for Saturday night he felt a pleasant tingle run over his skin.

 

               “ **You look disgustingly happy. Are you planning something?** ”

 

               Victor smiles over his shoulder at the brooding shape of Yurio curled up on the bed behind him. Not even the other Russians sour attitude could bring him down today.

 

               “ **Aren’t I always planning something?** ”

 

               “ **Yes, but your plans always tend to go to shit.** ” Yurio shifted so that he is lying on his stomach, head pillowed in his arms and blonde bangs falling across his forehead. “ **You think you would have noticed this by now.** ”

 

               Yurio had a point. Victor had been having a particularly unlucky streak lately where his plans oft went awry in spectacular ways.

 

               Not this time, though. This time everything was going to go perfectly. He could feel it.

 

               The way he saw it, the universe owed him.

 

               “ **Look, do you want to spend the whole weekend with Yuri and I being all couple-y right in your face, or do you want us to be far away from you?** ” The look on Yurio’s face answers his question better than any words could have. “ **That’s what I thought.** ”

 

               “ **Don’t let me stop you. I can’t wait to see how the universe dicks you around this time.** ”

 

               “ **Thanks, Yura. It’s always nice to have your support.** ”

 

               Victor is sure Yurio had another witty response to that, but he doesn’t get a chance to say it as Chris bursts into the room unannounced.

 

               “Victor, my darling! Are you done packing yet?”

 

               “ **Oh, hell no. I’m out of here.** ” Yurio hops up to his feet, grabbing his messenger bag and stalks towards the door, pausing briefly on his way out. “ **I’m going to find Beka. If you need me, don’t fucking bother.** ”

 

               “Bye, Yurio!” Chris sings as he moves out of the way to allow the young man to leave before turning his full attention back to Victor. “He’s in a downright chipper mood for him.”

 

               Victor nods and shoves another pair of underwear into his bag. He struggles to flip the switch in his brain back to English. Between Chris always wanting to gossip in French in front of others and Yurio’s constant slipping into and out of Russian at various moments, he’s starting to suffer a bit of language whiplash.

 

               “He does seem less grumpy these days. I guess he’s finally settling down a bit.” Victor frowns and taps a finger against his chin thoughtfully. He can’t help but feel like he’s forgetting to pack something. “Have you solidified the guest list yet?”

 

               “Yes. It’s gotten bigger than I intended it to be, but who am I to deny anyone a good time?” Chris sashays across the room and jumps up to sit on top of Victor’s desk. “We aren’t going to have enough rooms, so some people are going to have to share. I’m assuming you’re calling dibs on Yuri.”

 

               “Naturally.”

 

               “JJ and his girlfriend are coming now. What’s her name? Isabella?” Victor nods absentmindedly, still casting his gaze around the room in an effort to pinpoint exactly what it is he could be missing. “The Italian twins and the Czech student, too. And all the usual suspects, of course. Maybe Yurio would be cool with sharing a room with Otabeck? Might help keep him calm.”

 

               “Sounds like a solid plan.” Victor catches sight of his winter coat half shoved under the bed. Ah! That was it. The weather might have been warm enough here in Zurich, but the weather reports were showing the possibility of snow up in the mountains. He grinned triumphantly as he pulled it out from its hiding place and folded in neatly before place it in his bag, zipping it up and tossing it on the floor. “Thanks for all your help, by the way. I owe you one.”

 

               “Think nothing of it. That’s what friends who know friends who own romantic chalets are for.” Chris raises an eyebrow. “You will give me all the intimate details, right?”

 

               “We’ll see. I suppose it will depend on how intimate those details turn out to be.”

 

               “ _Ah! My darling child, he is all grown up and become a man!_ ”

 

               “Aren’t we supposed to be meeting Phichit and Yuri for dinner soon?” It’s not that Victor is uncomfortable about discussing his sex life with Chris. He’s done so on many occasions in the past. It just… Well, it’s just something Victor really can’t put his finger on that makes his insides squirm when the topic comes up these days. Almost like he is betraying Yuri’s privacy in some way even though they really haven’t done anything below the belt yet.

 

               “Smooth change of subject.” Chris obviously notices his less than subtle reaction, but he doesn’t push the issue. “You’re right. We should go.”

 

               Victor’s heart swoops in his chest. It had only been two hours since he last saw his boyfriend, two hours too long in his opinion, especially since he had gotten used to waking up with Yuri in his arms in Russia. He was missing that terribly now with only Yurio’s snoring to keep him company in the night. This trip would be worth it if only to have that back, even if only for a few nights.

 

               Being in love was the best thing he’d ever felt.

 

~

 

               They didn’t make it to dinner.

 

               Everything had started out fine. They’d met Yuri and Phichit in front of the dorm and had spent a few minutes joking and generally goofing off as they waited for the cab Chris had called to collect them. Chris had wanted to take them to a place downtown that had an excellent fondue tasting menu.

 

               The good mood continued in the cab. Phichit had sat in the front with the driver and Yuri, Victor, and Chris had piled into the back. Those in the back kept passing their phones up to Phichit so they could take plenty of pictures to commemorate the occasion. It was easy to keep the conversation going and it seemed as though they were on their way to a nice, relaxing evening before leaving for their trip the next afternoon.

 

               There was a small traffic jam when they were a feet streets away from where they were supposed to eat. Apparently one motorist had hit another in the middle of an intersection. Instead of staying in the cab and waiting it out, they paid their fair and decided to stretch their legs by walking the last few blocks.

 

               Victor had only been half paying attention to the conversation. Lost in Yuri’s eyes and the way the golden light from the streetlamps played across the planes of his face as they walked. It was because of this distraction that he hadn’t noticed Chris had come to a complete stop until he had almost walked right into the other man’s back.

 

               “ _Shit_.”

 

               A warning flashed across Victor’s mind as he heard the French curse fall from Chris’ lips and he felt the muscles across his back tighten instantly in a sympathetic reaction to his friend’s distress. He peered over Chris’ shoulder to see whatever it was Chris was looking at.

 

               As soon as he catches sight of what, or rather _who_ as the case is, Chris is staring at, the feeling of dread only intensifies.

 

               Chris seems frozen in place and Yuri and Phichit look at him in concern before glancing over at Victor. He frowns and mouths the words ‘ex-boyfriend’.

 

               And it is. Victor had only ever seen the other man through a computer screen, but he knew he was not mistaken. Chris’ ex-boyfriend was standing on the street corner a few shops down, dark hair, blue eyes, and one arm wrapped around the waist of another man.

 

               Yuri looks stunned and Phichit downright scowls, an expression that doesn’t suit his face at all. Victor reaches out and places a gentle hand on Chris’ shoulder. Chris jumps and turns back to see who is touching him, eyes wide.

 

               “ _I don’t like the look of this street. Is there perhaps another way we can go?_ ”

 

               Victor keeps his tone light. It's not too late. It doesn’t seem as though Julien has seen them yet. If they don’t make a scene about it, they can just turn back the way they’d come and pretend this had never happened.

 

               They turn to go. They almost make it, too.

 

               “ _Christophe? Christophe, is that you?_ ”

 

               It’s as though an electrical current runs through their group. Victor mentally begs Chris to just keep going. Act like they never heard anything. Behave as though his name isn’t Christophe and just keep walking.

 

               Chris stops. Turns. Plasters a fake smile on his face.

 

               Victor bites back a frustrated groan.

 

               “Julien!” Chris is trying to sound cheerful, but he’s just shy of hitting the mark. “I never would have expected running into you here.”

 

               “Neither did I. I didn’t even realize you would be back in town this month.” Victor can see the little muscle at the base of Chris’ left eye twitch at Julien’s words. Victor remembered they’d had plans for that first week in Switzerland, plans that had Chris staying in the flat he’d used to share with his ex. Plans that said ex had apparently forgotten. “Are these your friends?”

 

               “Yes, we’re his friends. I’m Victor. Victor Nikiforov. I believe we’ve met once or twice, through Skype.” Victor keeps his tone one degree above freezing, hoping the other man will get the hint.

 

               He does not.

 

               “Victor! I thought you looked familiar. Nice to meet you in person. This is Lukas, by the way.” The man at Julien’s side shifts awkwardly from one foot to the other. Well, at least one of them seems to have some kind of situational awareness. Victor almost feels sorry for him. He seems nice enough, attractive in kind of a bland way with light brown hair and hazel eyes.

 

               He doesn’t hold a candle to Chris in the looks department, though Victor is self-aware enough to recognize his opinion may be biased.

 

               “Charmed.” Victor is not charmed. Not at all. Yuri grabs his hand and squeezes.

 

               Chris looks a bit like he’s about to throw up, but he grits his teeth and continues with the introductions.

 

               “Ah, and this is Yuri Katsuki, Victor’s boyfriend. And Phichit Chulanont…”

 

               “I’m Chris’ boyfriend.”

 

               Victor raises an eyebrow as Phichit quickly threads his arm through Chris’ as he speaks. Chris himself looks floored for a split second before pulling his mask back on and offering up a confident smirk in his ex’s general direction. Yuri just shakes his head, but still says nothing.

 

               “Oh I…” Julien’s smile wavers for the first time. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize…”

 

               “We have reservations.” Lukas, who Victor is starting to like a bit despite the situation as he looks as though he clearly would love to be anywhere but here, cuts in quickly. “They won’t hold them forever. It was nice meeting you, but we really should go.”

 

               They exchange stilted goodbyes. As soon as Julien and Lukas are out of sight, Phichit and Chris jump apart as though they had each touched a hot stove.

 

               The mood ruined, Chris hails another cab and they sit in painful silence all the way back to campus. As soon as they enter the dorm, Chris and Phichit excuse themselves and practically sprint away in opposite directions, leaving Victor and Yuri trailing behind in the common area.

 

               “Have they invented a stronger word than ‘awkward’ yet?” Victor asks as soon as he is confident neither of their friends are in hearing range any longer.

 

               “If someone hasn’t, they definitely need to. I don’t think there’s an applicable word in either English or Japanese that fully encompasses what just happened.” Yuri seems upset and Victor presses a chaste kiss to the top of his head. "Clusterfuck might come close, though."

 

               “I can’t say there’s a good one in Russian or French either.” Victor feels exhausted all of sudden. Like he could barely keep his eyes open. “I can’t believe Phichit did that.”

 

               “I can. He’s a good friend and he hates it when the people he cares about are in pain.” Yuri sighs. “He’s done it for me more times than I care to count…. In a platonic way, of course.”

 

               Victor grunts in acknowledgement. The last thing he wants to be thinking about are nameless, faceless men or women putting Yuri in a situation where Phichit would feel the need to step in be his pretend boyfriend to get them to back off.

 

               “We should go to bed. I get the feeling tomorrow is going to be a long day.”

 

               Victor knows Yuri is right, so, even though he doesn’t want to, he gives Yuri a kiss goodnight and they go their separate ways.

 

               He’ll just have to deal with tomorrow when it comes.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Up ahead there is an insane amount of adorable Victuri. Plus, finally finding out exactly what is going on with Phichit and Chris! But mostly, cuddly Victuri.

               May – Switzerland

 

               Phichit and Chris seemed completely back to normal by morning, much to both Victor and Yuri’s relief. Neither one say anything about the night before and Victor and Yuri don’t press, taking their friends’ typical good humor and overall sunny dispositions as a sign that everything is okay.

 

               It’s three hours by public transports to get from the University of Zurich to Sierre, where Chris’ parents have said they will pick everyone up in order to take them to their estate on the outskirts of town. They plan on having dinner with Chris’ family that evening and then make their way to the chalet they will be staying at for the long weekend afterwards.

 

               The journey ends up taking closer to six hours. Halfway to Bern their bus blows a tire and the delay causes them to miss their changeover to another there, causing them to be trapped at the Bern station for two hours waiting for the next one.

 

               Victor’s good mood is slipping away with each minor setback. It’s almost like the universe doesn’t want him to be happy or something.

 

               They arrive long after a reasonable time for dinner, but Chris’ parents had held off on eating until they arrived. They are nice people, his mother is French and speaks with a heavy accent, but between Chris, Victor, and JJ, who apparently also speaks French, they manage to communicate with her easily enough. His father is more solemn, but he’s a business man and his English is hampered only by the slightest of accents.

 

               It is too late to take the van Chris’ parents have rented them to the chalet by the time they are done eating. Chris hadn’t been wrong, the house here was spacious enough, but it was geared more towards entertaining large groups of people and not housing them so there are only two guests rooms and fourteen people. Instead shoving seven people in each room like sardines, Élodie, Chris’ mother, sets them up in an old ballroom they had converted into an expansive entertainment room. There are plenty of couches, reclining chairs, and thick cushions for everyone.

 

               It’s almost like a slumber party. Or, Victor thinks this must be what one of those feel like. He’s never actually been to one.

 

               Victor and Yuri claim a couch for their own.

 

               “Are you sure you don’t want to find a spot on the floor?” Victor asked in hushed tones as he watched Yuri arranging pillows and blankets into what looked suspiciously like a nest. He had to admit it did look cozy.

 

               “Are you trying to say you _don’t_ want to share a couch with me?” Yuri straightens up and shoots Victor a look that cannot be described as anything other than coy. It’s suddenly hard to swallow around the lump that’s developed in his throat.

 

               “No, no!” Victor backtracks quickly. “If you want to, then I definitely want to.”

 

               “It’s not like we’re hiding anything.” Yuri reaches out and brushes a Victor’s bangs out of his eyes. Victor grabs his hand before Yuri can retract it and places a soft kiss on his knuckles before letting him go. A silent ‘thank you’ that he hopes does not go unheard.

 

               From the sparkle in Yuri’s eye, it would seem it did not.

 

               “It’s just… Unexpected?” Victor shuffles his weight from side to side for a moment before sinking down into the plush cushions of the couch at Yuri’s side. In the background he is vaguely aware of his friends meandering around, getting their own sleeping paces ready while JJ and Chris argue in French about what movie they should watch. For the moment, it seems as though no one is paying them any mind. “I just thought… You know, with everyone here…”

 

               “It’s not like they don’t know we’re dating.” Yuri places a hand on Victor’s knee and rests his head on his shoulder. Victor wants to squeal with happiness, but he doesn’t. That would definitely draw unwanted attention. “Besides, even if we slept on the floor, we’d end up cuddled together before the morning. You are the clingiest sleeper ever.”

 

               “You’ve shared a bed with enough clingy sleepers to feel confident enough to make that determination?” Victor loves how easy is it to tease Yuri these days. Almost like they had been doing it for most of their lives.

 

               Yuri grumbles something under his breath that Victor doesn’t need to hear to know it’s meant to be disparaging.

 

               Victor sits in silence for a moment and lets it all wash over him. If anyone had told him at this time last year that in twelve months he was going to find himself curled on a couch in Switzerland with the love of his life, he would have been concerned they had been doing drugs. He had never even imagined wanting to settle down with someone before in his entire twenty-three years of existence.

 

               Nowadays that was the _only_ thing he thought about.

 

               “Will you just fucking pick something already?” Yurio’s patience had apparently reached the end of its short rope and the shouted words were enough to pull Victor from his reflections. “It doesn’t matter what movie we watch so long as it’s in English.”

 

               While the others slowly begin to voice their own opinions on what they should be watching, Victor excuses himself to get ready for bed. It’s easy to slip into his normal routine, even in such strange places. He washes his face. Brushes his teeth. Changes into sweats and a V-neck shirt. Runs damp fingers through his hair to smooth everything down.

 

               Okay, so that last step had been a recent addition to Yuri’s now constant presence around bedtime.

 

               When he gets back, there is still arguing going on. By now, Sara, the fiery Italian with the over protective brother has joined the fray. Apparently, she has strong feelings about romantic comedies and exactly where they can go shove themselves.

 

               “Bathroom’s free.” Victor settles down by wear Yuri has stacked a pair of pillows. “Since it looks like the film isn’t going to be starting any time soon, you might want to get ready now.”

 

               “Good idea.” Yuri kisses him on the cheek and gets to his feet, digging around in his own bag for a moment before walking away with a change of clothes and his toiletry bag in his hands.

 

               Victor watches him until he walks through the doorway and out of sight.

 

               “You are the saddest looking puppy I have ever seen.” The couch moves a bit from the force of Phichit launching himself over its high back and landing in the space Yuri had just vacated. “He’s only going to be gone five minutes, tops.”

 

               “You don’t know that. He could be gone forever.” Victor pouted as Phichit laughed.

 

               “I highly doubt Yuri is the type to go out for milk one day and just not come back. He likes you too much to do that.” Phichit held out his phone as far as his arm could reach and Victor raised two fingers on his right hand in a ‘V’ shaped and smiled into the camera. “Thanks. You’re worth keeping if only because you are always down for a selfie and you look amazing in them no matter what the angle.”

 

               “I try.” Victor settled back deeper into the cushion. He was tired from a long day of travel and looking forward to getting some rest before they would have to crowd into another cramped van and make the drive up into the mountains.

 

               Phichit was quiet for a moment. Victor suppressed a yawn as he watched the Thai man out of the corner of his eye. That was interesting. Victor remembered sharing a room with the other man back in China. How the only time when Phichit had ever been quiet was when he had been asleep. Even if he had been completely engrossed in studying, there had been humming, soft singing under his breath, or the muttering of questions that were more for Phichit’s own benefit than directed towards anyone or anything.

 

               “Are you..?”

 

               “I’m fine.” Phichit cut Victor off before he could complete the question. Victor raised an eyebrow as the other man sighed heavily. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to snap. Yuri’s just been asking me the same thing all day.”

 

               “So, there isn’t anything wrong?”

 

               “No, I’ve already told him. I just don’t feel well at the moment. Stomach thing. I’ll be fine. Might have eaten something that disagreed with me.” Phichit waved off Victor’s concern with a smile and a wink. “German menus. Can’t understand what I’m ordering half the time. Bound to eat something my stomach didn’t like sooner or later.”

 

               “Fair enough. I’ve had a couple of close calls myself. Maybe we should have found a German friend to add to the group before we got here.” Victor pushed his unease from his mind. He vividly remembered venturing out to a food stand not far from campus about three days before without Chris and ending up spending most of the evening biting back the urge to remove the disagreeable meal from his body. “I might have some medicine you can have… Strike that. I probably don’t, but I know for a fact Yuri does. He’s always pretty much prepared for anything.”

 

               “No, thank you. If I change my mind, I’ll let you know. Also, I think literally no one other than Chris and Yuri even knew that French wasn’t the number one language spoken in Switzerland.” Phichit pointed out with another bright smile. “Ah well, hindsight is 20/20 as they say.”

 

               “You think they are going to finally figure out this movie thing?”

 

               Yurio had fully joined the fray at this point. Although he was shouting in Russian again, which was a bold choice that Victor wasn’t quite following since it meant Otabeck had to explain everything the younger man was saying before anyone could respond to whatever he was saying.

 

               He noticed Otabeck was purposefully leaving out most of the curse words and insults about JJ’s mother, though.

 

               “Why would you want them to do that? In my view, watching this _is_ the movie.” They both laughed at Phichit’s apt observation. “The only thing missing right now is popcorn.”

 

               “Did someone say ‘popcorn’?” Victor and Phichit swiveled their heads back to find Yuri holding a large bowl, filled to the brim with exactly that. Behind him was Chris’ mother, balancing a bowl in each hand, as she made her way into the room.

 

               “Yuri!” Phichit immediately wiggled over so that there was enough space for the Japanese man to sit between the two of them. “Perfect timing as always.”

 

               Yuri nodded as he settled down into the space that had been made for him, placing the bowl in his lap and looking over at Phichit in concern as the other man grabbed a larger than necessary handful and stuff it into his face with glee.

 

               “Should you really be eating that fast with how your stomach was feeling this morning?” Yuri surreptitiously moved the bowl a few centimeters towards Victor. “Even if you are feeling better, you don’t want to risk upsetting it again.”

 

               “Thanks for worrying about me, but I’m fine. Really. I promise.” Phichit did sound fine. Victor could tell Yuri didn’t quite believe his friend. There was a tension pulling at the corner of Yuri’s eyes, but he shifted the bowl to back more towards the middle and didn’t say anything further.

 

               Chris’ mother was now having a concerned conversation with him in French, eyeing Yurio with a wary look. Victor couldn’t blame her. If you weren’t used to him, he could make quite the impression. After another bit of back and forth, it seemed as though a consensus had been reached and Chris triumphantly put a DVD in the player and turned the television on.

 

               Victor watched as Chris scanned the room, finding them and waving as he began to pick his way around the bodies and bags strewn across the floor.

 

               With all the blankets and pillows Yuri had confiscated for his absolutely adorable nest, there was barely enough room for the three men already on the couch. There definitely wasn’t going to be enough space for a fourth. Chris seemed to realize that as he pulled even with them. He gave a soft smile and a nod of recognition before changing course and dropping down onto an adjacent couch that he had claimed prior to being drawn into the great movie debate.

 

               Someone, most likely Chris’ mother, dimmed the lights and the mutters of the others began to fade away as the movie began to play.

 

               It was typical action movie fare. Something American, Victor guessed, though he couldn’t be quite sure. About twenty minutes in Phichit grabbed the bowl of popcorn from Yuri and got up, walking past Chris’ couch and settling into a spot between Seung-Gil and Guang Hong on the floor.

 

               As soon as he was gone, Victor and Yuri took the open opportunity and spread out a bit more. Pulling their legs up onto the couch and wrapping the blankets around themselves. Victor pressed his back into the cushions behind him and wrapped his arms around Yuri’s waist, pinning the other man in place against his chest.

 

               Yuri fell asleep first. Victor could feel the rise and fall of his deep breaths against his forearm. He buried his nose in the crook of Yuri’s neck and inhaled the clean scent of him. He placed a light kiss there, confident that Yuri was too far gone to have felt it.

 

               Before he knew it, he was drifting off as well.

 

~

 

               Yuri woke up that morning in Victor’s arms for the first time since Russia.

 

               Yuri had rolled over in the middle of the night and he opened his eyes to find himself staring at the pale skin stretched over Victor’s collar bones instead of the view of all their friends spread out throughout the room as he had when he drifted off the night before. He supposed that was a good thing. If the first thing he’d seen was a reminder of the fact that he was curled up in Victor’s arms in front of all his friends and acquaintances he probably would have been less content to simply lie there and enjoy the feeling of being held.

 

               He feels Victor waking up before he even gets a glimpse of a flash of blue from behind the other man’s eyelids. He’d noticed this before, in Russia, but Victor tends to wake up from the bottom up.

 

               It starts in his feet. Victor’s legs are longer than Yuri’s and he feels the pressure of the tops of Victor’s toes pressing into the balls of his feet. The muscles in Victor’s calves bunched up and then tightened into a stretch. Their legs always ended up tangled together and Victor’s left knee rubbed against the top of Yuri’s calf. His hips would shift next, turning slightly away from Yuri’s thank goodness. That particular part of Victor’s wake up process would have been horribly embarrassing for the both of them if it had gone the other way.

 

               The muscles in his abdomen were next, twitching and shifting against Yuri’s stomach. He could feel the slip and slide of the tendons along Victor’s spine on his fingertips, even through the rough cotton of his shirt. Victor’s chest swells with a deeply inhaled breath and brushes against Yuri’s as it does. Victor’s hands move so that his fingers are splayed between Yuri’s shoulder blades, pressing firmly against him as though he is preparing for Yuri to pull away and wants to be able to prevent it when it happens.

 

               Victor places a kiss on the top of Yuri’s head.

 

               It is now that Yuri tilts his head upwards, seeing those brilliant eyes he quite often finds himself lost in. The blue coloring peeks out from behind his impossibly silver lashes and Yuri sees nothing but joy and adoration through the sleep that still hangs in the background.

 

               “Morning.” Victor says in his deep voice, Russian accent much more prevalent in the mornings before he fully sheds the last vestiges of sleep.

 

               “Good morning, Vitya.” Yuri still isn’t entirely comfortable using the nickname in front of the others yet, but his senses are telling him that there isn’t much movement going on in the rest of the room so he figures it’s safe enough.

 

               The bright smile Victor gifts him in return makes it more than worth it.

 

               God, Yuri wants to kiss him so badly. He’s never felt an urge this strong in his entire life. He’s never been an extremely tactile person, but it’s like Victor just blows all of that out of the water. It’s like Yuri is an addict and Victor is the best drug he’s ever had.

 

               It’s going to crush him when he leaves.

 

               Yuri feels his stomach drop at that thought and he distracts himself by burying his face in the crook of Victor’s neck, to hide his eyes from Victor’s intense gaze and to buy some time to ground himself. Now is not the time to give in to his self-pity. He can do that later.

 

               He lets the heady feeling of Victor pulling him tight against his body to wipe away the darker thoughts. They are still there, hiding just below the surface, ready and waiting to pounce as soon as they find a crack in Yuri’s carefully constructed armor. They are easier to manage these days. He knows there is never going to be a time when they are gone for good, but this is nice for now. Having more control over them.

 

               Having someone to hold him when it feels like things are too much to bear.

 

               Victor is humming now. One hand rubbing circles against Yuri’s back and the other glides through his hair, pausing as Victor’s fingers get caught in random tangled patches and gently teasing the dark strands apart. Yuri shivers and subconsciously tries to get closer, digging his fingertips into Victor’s broad back and hooking his right ankle around Victor’s.

 

               They lay like that for awhile. It could have been minutes or hours or anything in between. Time had this funny way of not behaving properly whenever Victor was around.

 

               The moment was eventually broken by the sound of someone’s phone alarm going off and the responding groans of those were pulled from their own slumber because of it. There was a brief half-hearted struggle as Yuri tried to pull away and Victor tried to hold him in place, but Yuri eventually won the battle as he always did.

 

               He rolls over and gets to his feet, raising his arms over his head and feeling a pleasant pop and crack in his spine as he works out the kinks there. He can’t hide a smirk as he catches Victor’s eyes going glassy and zeroing in on the strip of skin right above his pajama pants that is revealed with the gesture. Too bad Victor is too busy staring at his ass instead of his face and doesn’t see it.

 

               “Can you hand me my glasses?”

 

               Victor starts, mouth hanging open slightly and eyes wide. A pink flush stains his cheeks and the tip if his nose and Yuri’s toes curl as the knowledge that _Yuri_ has cause this reaction hits him like a swift punch to the gut. It’s only ever for a fraction of a second before Victor wrests back control over his body, but just seeing it is more than enough to stoke Yuri’s fragile ego.

 

               “Yes, yes. Your glasses.” Victor twists at the waist and reaches over to where Yuri’s glasses are sitting on the arm of the couch. He grabs them and passes them over, allowing their fingertips to linger before taking them and placing them back on his face where they belong.

 

               “Good news!” Chris’ chipper voice cuts through everything. The Swiss man is also on his feet now, squinting at the phone in his hands. “Breakfast is ready whenever we want it!”

 

               There is a smattering of more groans and some cheers that ripple across the room. Yuri bends over and grabs his toiletry bag and the set of clothing he’d left neatly folded on top of his things the night before. He knows without having to look that that Victor is staring at him again. Before, that thought would have caused him to turn beet red and maybe jump away entirely. Now, he felt nothing but pleased.

 

               He goes to get ready for the day with a skip in his step.

 

~

 

               Victor is nervous. It’s still an odd feeling to him. Before, Victor never used to get nervous. Not about things like this anyways.

 

               Surprisingly enough, he finds he’s coming to quite like the flutter of butterflies in his stomach.

 

               He could still feel a tingle in his arms for the most of the morning. Almost like a ghost of Yuri was still enveloped in them. He’d heard of phantom limb syndrome before. That feeling when a patient would lose a limb, but still feel it even years after it had been amputated. He imagined that might be close to what this felt like. The feeling of Yuri pressed up against him when he wasn’t even in the same room.

 

               “ _Are you ready for tonight, my darling?_ ” They are seated on the expansive deck behind Chris’ home. The remains of breakfast still scattered over the tables around them. Victor glanced over to where Yurio and Yuri were settled on the grass of the sloping lawn, making small talk and stretching.

 

               “ _As ready as I’ll ever be as far as Yuri is concerned, I think. I am now firmly convinced I shall never be over the first flush of love. Not if Yuri continues to find newer and better ways to make me fall all over again._ ” Victor sees Chris’ smile falter and he narrows his eyes in concern. “ _Are you alright?_ ”

 

               “ _Ah? Me?”_ It looks as though Chris want to smile again. To wave Victor off and protest that he’s fine. Victor glares at him in warning. “ _Fine. I’m not feeling my best today._ ”

 

               “ _Julien?_ ” Victor asks and Chris grunts. “ _That was a shit move the other night. He didn’t need to do that. I know I’ve said it a million times already, but I really do mean it. If that is the kind of petty person he wants to be, you are better off without him_.”

 

               “ _I know, I know._ ” Chris pause to take a drink of his orange juice. He’s now avoiding looking at Victor, choosing to stare out across the lawn as well. Aside from Yurio and Yuri, a handful of the others are out there as well. Phichit, Guang Hong, and Leo are taking turns performing poorly executed cartwheels while Emil good naturedly videos them. “ _Knowing it and feeling it are completely separate things, you as I am sure you understand_.”

 

               “ _I do._ ” Victor glances at the table directly to their right. Sara and Michele are deep in conversation with Seung-Gil and Otabeck. JJ and Isabella are nowhere to be seen and Victor continues, now convinced there is no one in the immediate vicinity that speaks French enough to understand their conversation. “ _You have every right to feel like shit right now. You don’t have to hide it._ ”

 

               “ _Of course I do. I’m the host._ ” Chris places his glass back on the table with a dull thump. “ _I don’t have time to be depressed or in my own head right now. Might even be a good thing. It’s easier to let him go when I’m not given the chance to think about his stupidly attractive face every five seconds._ ”

 

               “ _I can postpone my date with Yuri if you need me. We have plenty of time._ ” Victor knows even as he suggests it that Chris will refuse. He has to offer, though. Has to try to make the outreach. Chris is his best friend. He would do anything for him. Sure enough, Chris is shaking his head firmly. “ _Come on. It’s not a bad thing to need a hand to hold right now._ ”

 

               “ _Don’t let my romantic troubles distract you. You are my best friend, and nothing will ever replace that, but there are plenty of hands to hold around here if I find I need one and you will always only be just a phone call away._ ” Chris is perking up more now. For real this time. Not just putting on a false front for Victor’s benefit. It’s good to see it. “ _Go, go. Enjoy yourself. Confess your love and seal the deal. Then tell me all about it in the morning._ ”

 

               Victor almost chokes on his own spit.

 

               “ _I’m not...! I mean, we’re not…_ ” Victor feels like his face in on fire and he takes a deep breath to bring himself back under control. “ _That’s not what tonight is about._ ”

 

               Chris throws his head back and laughs, prior bad mood completely erased in the face of Victor’s uncharacteristic stuttering. Victor frowns and takes a drink of his own juice in order to clear his throat.

 

               “ _Blushing like a virgin. I never thought I would see the day._ ” Chris shakes his head in disbelief. “ _Make sure you let him know that’s not what tonight is about, in that case. From the looks he’s been giving you lately he’s probably going to jump you as soon as you clear the threshold if you aren’t careful._”

 

               This time Victor does choke. It takes several minutes of coughing and flailing to get his traitorous body back under control. Enough so that the others turn to look at him in concern.

 

               “ _I-I don’t have the faintest clue what you’re talking about_.”

 

               “ _The sad thing is, I actually believe that._ ” Chris’ green eyes are glinting with amusement. “ _Next time he does that thing where he leans over and sticks his right hip out and bites his lip, take care to look at his face instead of his ass and you’ll see what I’m talking about._ ”

 

               Victor frowns. Surely Chris doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Victor would have _noticed_ if Yuri had been sending his heated looks, right? That’s not exactly something you missed, is it? When your boyfriend is dropping hints about taking you back to the bedroom?

 

               Victor puts the thought out of his mind. It will do no good to dwell on it now. It wouldn’t change his plans for tonight even if he did. First, he’s going to confess his love to Yuri with all the trappings and trimmings such a declaration deserves. Where the evening goes from there he will leave up in the air.

 

               Shit, now he’s nervous again.

 

~

 

               “Where are we going, again?” Yuri asks as Victor leads the way up a gravel road.

 

               “It’s supposed to be a surprise.” Victor knows he’s whining, but Yuri only gives him a slightly exasperated smile before adjusting where the straps of his backpack are rubbing against the collar of his shirt. “If I tell you, then it won’t be.”

 

               “Aren’t the others going to miss us?” Yuri tries again. This time there is the hint of nerves just under the surface and Victor catches the warning sign.

 

               “Chris knows exactly where we’re going. He’s the one that found the place I’m taking you. I promise if we’re gone for more than twenty-four hours, he’ll alert the authorities.”

 

               “Twenty-four hours is more than enough time for you to kill me and bury my body in hole somewhere. With how thick these woods are, I doubt they’d ever find me.” Yuri sounds like he’s joking. At least, Victor hopes he’s joking. “If you can’t tell me what is it, can you tell me how far we have to go? I only have two water bottles.”

 

               “It’s about two kilometers according to my GPS.” Victor can’t help but give Yuri an incredulous look. “Water bottles?”

 

               “Always prepared. I knew the chalet that we were _supposed_ to be going to was in the woods. I didn’t know if any of the others might want to go for a hike.” Yuri adjusted the straps again. “I’m glad I was. With your sense of direction two kilometers might end up with us crossing the border into France before we notice.”

 

               “Yuri… Why do you have to be so mean?” Victor is pouting, an expression that seems to work best when it comes to making Yuri laugh. He is not disappointed. “I promise we aren’t going to end up in France. This is the only road and there aren’t any turnoffs. Even a child go get us to where we’re going.”

 

               “Which is…?”

 

               “Nice try, Katsuki, but you’re going to have to be better than that to get this secret out of me.”

 

               It didn’t take too long for them to reach the end of the road, which was really a long driveway. The whole time Yuri kept trying to trip Victor up and get him to let slip the location they were heading towards. He came close one or twice. Once when Yuri had paused to take a drink from his water bottle and a drop of water had escaped from the corner of his mouth. And trickled down the column of his throat.

 

               The second time was when Yuri had asked another pointed question, licking his lips as soon as the words had left his mouth. The only thing that had saved him that time was the fact that his brain had fried so thoroughly saying anything was impossible.

 

               “We’re here.”

 

               Silhouetted against the backdrop of the sun setting over the distant peaks of the Swiss Alps was a small cottage. That was the best way to describe it. Where the chalet they had separated from the others at had been large, grandiose, surrounded by open space and tiered decks, this place was smaller, sheltered by tall trees and intimate.

 

               It was perfect.

 

               Yuri was grinning as he turned towards Victor, stepping forward to give him a quick kiss on the lips before taking his hand and pulling him towards the steps leading up to the front door.

 

               Victor followed meekly for the moment. Letting Yuri be the one to open the door and lead him into the foyer. It was there that Yuri faltered for a moment and Victor took over.

 

               “Come with me.” Victor whispered in his ear as he passed his boyfriend, tugging gently on his hand as he went.

 

               There was a pair of French doors at the back of the cottage that lead out to a small deck. Victor opened one and they stepped out into the cooler mountain air. There was a table here, covered in a white cloth. Candles were placed through the entire area waiting to be lit and there were two tall and slender gas powered heaters, one behind each chair at the table.

 

               “You didn’t have to do this, Vitya.” Victor’s heart swelled from the soft tone of Yuri’s voice combined with his use of the diminutive form of his name. He was fairly certain he was never going to get over hearing Yuri call him that.

 

               “I wanted to. It occurred to me that we haven’t really had the best of luck when it comes to going on dates.” Victor walked Yuri to the table, releasing his hand and motioning for Yuri to take a seat as he grabbed a lighter that was waiting for him on the deck’s railing and turned to begin lighting the candles.

 

               Yuri, stubborn boy that he was, didn’t sit. Instead, he went and turned both of the heaters on while Victor was occupied.

 

               It made a pretty picture once they were done. The candles, the sunset, Yuri leaning against the railing and framed with the dying light from the sun. Victor felt like his heart was lodged in his throat. It made it hard to speak, but he managed to swallow and clear in his throat enough to get the words out.

 

               “Chris said he arranged to have someone drop off something for dinner. Stay here and I’ll heat it up and bring it out.”

 

               “I have a better idea.” Yuri pushed off from the railing and stepped forward towards where Victor had left the door open. “Let’s go get it together. That way we don’t have to spend a second apart.”

 

               That is an idea Victor can definitely get behind.

 

               There’s a bouquet of roses waiting for them in a case in the kitchen. Yuri giggles as he rolls his eyes, moving to bury his nose in them and taking a deep breath.

 

               “Roses? Really?” Victor can’t help but pout again at the sarcasm in his boyfriend’s voice.

 

               “You don’t like them”

 

               “No, no. Nothing like that.” Yuri grabs a crimson petal from where it has fallen onto the marble countertop and rolls it in between his index finger and thumb. “It’s just… Well, it’s a little cliché, isn’t it?”

 

               “There’s nothing wrong with a cliché moonlit dinner for two and some roses, is there?” Victor is teasing now. If Yuri really didn’t like it, he wouldn’t have said anything at all. Yuri was always polite to a fault and he would had grit his teeth and gone along with whatever Victor had wanted without a sound of protest. Simply the fact that he was joking and poking fun at Victor’s expense meant that he was relaxed and, more importantly, pleased.

 

               “No, I guess there isn’t.” Yuri takes two big steps forward and wraps his arms around Victor’s neck. “Thank you. It’s perfect.”

 

               Victor intended to do this later, after they’d eaten. To be out on the deck, Yuri pulled close against his chest, hands gripping the other man’s waist, candles and moonlight casting their flickering light across the scene in order to set the mood. But Yuri was here, in his arms. Yuri was looking up at him as though there was nothing he wanted to see more.

 

               It was time.

 

               “I love you.”

 

               Yuri let out a sharp huff of air, as though someone had punched him in the stomach. Emotions flickered through those expressive, brown eyes, too quick for Victor to be able to decipher. His hands tightened in their grasp on the nape of Victor’s neck.

 

               For the space of a heartbeat there was silence.

 

               And then...

 

               It was like watching snow melt on a warm spring day. Yuri’s lips stretched into a wide smile, his eyes sparkled with joy.

 

               “I love you.”

 

               Victor didn’t wait for him to say anything further. Those three words were the only things he’d needed to hear.

 

               Their lips crashed together, the kiss open mouthed and filled with passion. He felt Yuri’s fingers tangled in the short hair at the nape of his neck. Victor responded by gripping Yuri’s waist tight, pulling their hips together so there wasn’t even a fraction of a centimeter’s space between them.

 

               Yuri groaned into his mouth at the contact. Victor felt a bolt of pure pleasure shoot up his spine with an intensity that made him dizzy. If it weren’t for Yuri there to help hold him up where he had gone weak in the knees, he was sure he would have collapsed onto the kitchen floor right then and there.

 

               His rational mind left him, then. He forgot about dinner in the fridge. About the candles on the deck and the table set for two. All that mattered right now was Yuri. Yuri who was pressed up against him in all the right places. Yuri who pulled back just enough to nibble on his lower lip before slipping his tongue into Victor’s mouth.

 

               And then someone was pounding on the front door.

 

               They broke apart, startled by the loud noise. Yuri recovered first, concern flashing across his face and he hurried to get the door, Victor following in his wake. The brief flare of irritation faded quickly and worry took its place. Only Chris and Phichit knew where they were. Neither one would have bothered them without a good reason. Victor checked his phone as Yuri opened the door, noting there were no messages or missed calls.

 

               “Yuri!”

 

               “Phichit?” Yuri cried out in surprise as his friend didn’t even wait for the door to open the whole way before launching himself into Yuri’s arms.

 

               “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I just… I didn’t know what to do.”

 

               “Phichit, calm down. It’s okay.” Yuri cooed into the other man’s dark hair. He looked over at Victor, face pale and eyes tight with worry. Victor nodded calmly, reaching out to close the door while Yuri ushered Phichit over the den.

 

               Well, this was not how Victor had seen the evening going.

 

~

 

               “I should go. I wasn’t thinking. I’ve interrupted your evening and…”

 

               “Phichit, stop. You’re our friend and something has clearly upset you. You are staying right here.”

 

               They were back out on the deck. Phichit’s eyes were rimmed with red, but he was no longer crying. Victor figured that was a step in the right direction. While Yuri had been calming the Thai man down, Victor had gotten the food out of the fridge and heated it up, along with pouring three rather large glasses of red wine. He had a feeling they were going to need it.

 

               “Yuri’s right. You’re our friend. You aren’t going anywhere.” Victor handed out the wine. “Do you want to talk about it?”

 

               “No. Yes. No… I don’t know.” Phichit ran a shaky hand through his hair and accepted the glass that Victor offered him with a muttered ‘thanks’. “Shit. I don’t fucking know what to do. Everything happened so fast and then I couldn’t breathe and all I could think about was getting to you, Yuri. I should have texted or called or something, though. I shouldn’t have just dropped in unannounced.”

 

               “Deep breaths. Like you tell me to do when I have an attack.” Yuri shifted his chair closer to his friend and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Breathe in and count to five. Breathe out and count to ten.”

 

               Phichit did as he was told. After about ten cycles of this he seemed to be feeling well enough to take a deep swig from his wine glass.

 

               “Thanks. I knew you would know what to do.”

 

               “I should hope so. I’ve had plenty of practice.” Yuri takes his hand back, apparently feeling better now that Phichit doesn’t look like he’s on the verge of hyperventilating any longer. “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. We’re here for you, whatever you need.”

 

               Phichit glances over at Victor, a guilty look painted across his face.

 

               “I can go inside if you like.” Victor offers. “I won’t be offended at all.”

 

               “No. Stay.” Phichit insists. “I think… I think you might be able to help.”

 

               “Anything you need.” Victor took a sip of his own wine.

 

               Victor’s phone is sitting on the table and it lights up and buzzes. Victor grabs it quickly, seeing a text message on the screen.

 

               “It’s Chris. He wanted to see if Phichit’s with us.” He looks up just in time to see Phichit freeze. Yuri’s worried look only intensifies. “Can I tell him, yes? I won’t say anything else. He sounds worried. There’s like eight texts here.”

 

               Phichit nods.

 

               Text sent, Victor stows his phone in his pocket this time so that it can’t distract them again.

 

               “This is about Chris, isn’t it?” Yuri asks. His full attention is on his friend now. “Did he do something to you? Did he come onto you and make you uncomfortable?”

 

               “No, no! It’s not like that!” Phichit looks from Victor to Yuri to Victor and then back again. He shifts in his seat under the combined weight of Victor and Yuri’s combined concerned gazes. Runs his hand through his hair again. Chugs the remainder of his wine. Takes a deep breath and then completely deflates. “Okay, so it is kind of like that.”

 

               “Phichit, what…?”

 

               “I accidentally slept with him, okay!”

 

               Dead silence.

 

               Nobody moves. Nobody even breathes. Victor couldn’t have formulated a complete thought right then if his life depended on it.

 

               Yuri breaks the silence.

 

               “How do you ‘accidentally’ sleep with someone?”

 

               Phichit begins to laugh hysterically.

 

               “Well, the first time was an accident. I guess the other two technically weren’t.”

 

               “You slept with him _three times_?” Victor felt his mouth fall open. “You slept with Chris three times and he never _told me_?”

 

               “You slept with Chris three time and _you_ never told _me_?” Yuri echoed Victor’s question with slightly different emphasis, also with his mouth hanging open in shock.

 

               “I think I should explain…”

 

               “Yes, I think you should.” Yuri grabs his glass and polishes off his wine. “Victor? Refill?”

 

               Victor drains his own glass and tops the three of them off. Takes a look at what’s remaining in the bottle. Excuses himself. Returns with two more unopened bottles and a cork screw. It’s going to be one of those nights.

 

               Yuri stares at Phichit. “Explain.”

 

               “The first time really was an accident, I swear.” Phichit taken another stiff drink as though to fortify himself. “It was after my party. We were all hanging out in the common area. The two of you had already fucked off back to Yuri’s room. Guang Hong had brought out yet another bottle of secret vodka… I’m actually starting to be concerned he might have a drinking problem. Or an enabling problem. I’m still not sure which. Anyway, we started passing it around and Leo suggested we play some party games.”

 

               “I don’t even remember what game we were playing. It was like a mesh between Spin the Bottle and Truth or Dare. There didn’t actually seem to be very many rules.” Phichit began tapping his foot against the floor. “Yurio had just dared Otabeck to mix together this weird opera song with some German techno trash and Guang Hong was trying to get Seung-Gil to dance with him. Then Leo made me spin the bottle and it landed on Chris and I was going to ask him if he wanted Truth or Dare, but Leo suggested we do Seven Minutes in Heaven instead. We looked everywhere, but we couldn’t find a closet that was unlocked. I knew JJ was back in our room asleep, so Chris suggested we use his room since Guang Hong was distracted. Leo swore he was going to set a timer and come get us when our seven minutes was up. I’m not too clear on exactly what happened, but suffice to say he never fulfilled that part of the bargain.”

 

               “You went up to his room to make out with him and ended up sleeping with him?” Yuri sounded more curious than judgmental, but Phichit flinched anyway.

 

               “I can see that. Chris can get carried away sometimes.” Victor wasn’t exactly sure who’s side he was supposed to be taking in this situation since Chris wasn’t even here to defend himself, but he figured his statement was neutral enough.

 

               “We _both_ got carried away.” Phichit admitted. “Not to go into the gory details, but we you know… Did it. In the morning we were so sick, too. I’m talking next level hangover. I’m surprised either of us remembered anything we were both so smashed.”

 

               “We really do have to stop partying like that.” Yuri pat Phichit on the back as the other man knocked back another deep gulp of his drink. Victor followed suit. It was a lot easier to wrap his mind around what apparently happened now that he had a nice buzz going. “Okay, so that was the first time. What happened the other times?”

 

               “The second time was the Friday night after the party. There was an open mic night at a bar downtown and JJ decided it was a great opportunity to go play in front of an audience that would not include Yurio heckling him.” Phichit shuffled in his seat, his cheeks starting to turn noticeably red even underneath his tanned complexion. “Guang Hong, Leo, and Seung-Gil were studying in Chris’ room and Yuri had promised to help Sara with a project so the both of you were in the common area doing that. I invited him over. I didn’t really intend for anything to happen, but we started talking. He brought up the night of my birthday party. One thing led to another… He was gone before JJ came back. I didn’t think much of it. It was nice. He was nice. I assumed it was just a fling. Something to do when there was nothing better to occupy ourselves.”

 

               “The third time was a few days before we left to come here.” Phichit sighs. “It felt different that time. More intense, I guess. That’s not really the word for it, but that’s the best I’ve got. I kept telling myself it was stupid to get attached. That neither one of us had mentioned anything about the long term. I started worrying he’d think I was being too clingy. Yuri, you have no idea how close I was to just telling you everything that day you found me in the quad.”

 

               “I _knew_ there was something bothering you!” Yuri now did look disappointed, though Victor was sure it was more due to Phichit not trusting him enough to talk to him and not because he disapproved of Phichit’s actions. “You should have told me. You didn’t have to carry this burden alone. That’s what I’m here for!”

 

               “It’s not that I didn’t want to tell you. I really did! Then we ran into Chris’ stupid fucking ex-boyfriend and I had to do that dumbass thing where I pretended to be his boyfriend and it was super awkward and no one said anything about it and I just freaked. You know, a little bit.”

 

               Phichit pauses and takes another deep breath.

 

               “I was fine. I was totally fine. I figured it was over.” There were tears shining in Phichit’s eyes again. “I was _fine_ with it being over. I’d made peace with it. Then we got to the chalet and you guys were gone on your date and everyone was picking rooms… I was trying to figure out I where I was going to stay and Chris just looked so stunned when I asked him which room was mine. He said ‘I thought we were going to be sharing.’ He looked so happy, too. I just… I just _freaked_.”

 

               “Why?” The question had left his lips before Victor could stop it. “I mean, if that’s an insensitive question you don’t have to answer it.”

 

               “I don’t want to be his rebound.” If Victor’s question had phased him at all, he didn’t show it. “I don’t know what I want to be to him, but I know I don’t want to be that. I get that they’ve been technically broken up for almost two months now, but seeing his ex-boyfriend again… The timing just isn’t right.”

 

               “The timing is never right.” Yuri poured out the last of the currently opened bottle of wine into Phichit’s now empty glass and Victor went ahead and opened a new bottle. “This is going to sound kind of familiar to you, but know that I got this advice from the best advice giver I’ve ever met. You need to sit down and talk to him. One on one. No bullshit. Get on the same page and then you can go from there. Nothing is going to be solved if you’re both calling the shots out of two completely different playbooks.”

 

               “I hate it when you turn my own words back on me.”

 

               “No, you don’t. You love being right, so this is just you being right via proxy.” Yuri thinks that over for a second before changing his mind. “Actually, it’s more like your own advice circling back around to you.”

 

               “It’s good advice.” Taking a sip of his own drink, Victor nods in agreement. He had a feeling half the heart to heart conversations he’d had with Yuri in the past few months had been proceeded by those very words. “I am confident I have reaped the second-hand benefits of it on many occasions.”

 

               “Can’t you just help me hide for the next seven months? You’re good at that, Yuri. The best.”

 

               “It’s true. I’m still convinced you’re a ninja.”

 

               “I’m not a ninja, and I’m not helping you hide.” Yuri rolled his eyes and shot Victor a warning glare. “We don’t have to go back tonight. It’s getting late after all and I feel like we’re overdue for a long bitch session. As soon as we get back to school you need to talk to him, though. Victor and I can help set it up if you want.”

 

               “You don’t mind…? I… I kind of crashed your date.” Phichit’s words were coming out a bit more slurred now.

 

               “It’s fine.” Victor was the one to reassure him this time. He could tell when someone he cared about was in crisis, and Victor did care about Phichit. And not just as Yuri’s best friend. Somewhere along the way, the Thai man had become a friend to him as well and friend calamities outweighed date nights every time. “I’m going to text Chris one more time just to let him know you are still safe and not to expect you back tonight, and then we are going to get drunk on this wine.”

 

               “Thanks, Victor.” Phichit seemed to be feeling a bit better. It had probably helped to get it off his chest.

 

               He went into the house in order to text his best friend, just in case the Swiss man wanted to call in need of a shoulder to cry on while Yuri kept Phichit distracted out on the deck.

 

               They texted for about twenty minutes. Victor reassured him at least fifty times that Phichit was fine, just emotional. That they would be back in the morning as planned so they could ride back into Sierre with everyone else on time. Chris was frantic, his texts a mixture of English and French and typos.

 

               ‘He needs time. You both need time.’ Victor texts back after a lengthy wall of text where Chris has threatened to run up there, his duties as a host for their other friends be damned. ‘Get your shit together and figure out if this is something you really want before you throw yourself at his feet.’

 

               Victor promises that they will take a chance to talk as well, once they get back to school and before he and Yuri set something up for Chris and Phichit to meet. He offers to come back to the chalet right then and there if Chris wants to talk right now, but Chris declines. They bid each other goodnight and Victor returns to the deck where Phichit is about another glass and a half in.

 

               It is going to be one long, long night.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Story time:
> 
> I haven't written fanfic in literally about three years. I do, however, participate in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) every year. For those who do not know, the goal for this event is to write 50,000 words of original fiction during the month of November. By the end of the month I am literally pulling my hair out trying to squeeze roughly 10,000 words out of nowhere in the last few days.
> 
> I began writing this fic on March 1st. It is now (in my corner of the world) March 29th. As of this posting I have 104,917 words sitting on my computer (between what's already posted and the part of Chapter 17 I've already got outlined and waiting to be filled in with details.
> 
> This is INSANE. AND I LOVE IT!!
> 
> Alright. Anyways. To make up for the drama that was the last chapter and to celebrate the milestone that is 100K words, how about we have a dash of open, honest communication and an uninterrupted Victuri date at last?
> 
> Thank you to everyone who has left a kudos or a comment. I love every single one of you!

               June – Spain

 

               It finally happens when they arrive in Barcelona, Spain. Victor is assigned to a room with Yuri for the first time since the trip began.

 

               He only wishes they could be a bit more excited about it, but there is still a cloud hanging around them.

 

               “They still won’t talk to each other?” Yuri sounded exhausted and Victor didn’t blame him. They had both been having sleepless nights lately. Between finals, which had thankfully wrapped up three days before they had left Zurich and the way Chris and Phichit were still intently avoiding each other, it had been difficult to spend much time together. “And Phichit thought I was bad about running away from my problems.”

 

               “No offense, but you are bad about running away from your problems. He’s had plenty of time to learn from the master.” Victor began unpacking his sleep shirts and tucking them into an empty drawer. “Although, I have to say Chris could give the lot of you a run for your money at this point. At least when you were trying to run from me, I was running after you. Them running in opposite directions is making this much more complicated than it needs to be.”

 

               “Agreed.” Yuri had carefully placed his bags on top of the desk that was on his side of the room and was standing in the center of the floor looking back and forth between the two beds deep in thought. “Well, we don’t have finals and traveling to get in the way anymore. You get Chris, I’ll get Phichit and we’ll set them up just like you convinced Phichit to do with me in China.”

 

               “Sounds like a plan.” Victor paused in his unpacking and now turned his full attention to Yuri, who was still staring around as though he were trying to work out a complex math problem. “Is something wrong?”

 

               “Not wrong, per se. Just not necessarily right.” Yuri offered up as though that explanation was supposed to do anything other than confuse him further. The Japanese man seemed to notice the lack of a lightbulb going off over Victor’s head and elaborated. “The beds are too small to share. I’m trying to figure out the best way to push them together while only moving the bare minimum of other furniture around.”

 

               Victor’s brain melted. Again. He was going to get permanent damage if it kept doing that.

 

               “If we slide the bottom end of my bed across the floor and angle it parallel with the door, that would give us enough space to push my desk over to take its spot against the wall and then we could move your desk over so that its pushed into the corner. It would be a tight squeeze but… Oh, Victor!”

 

               “Don’t mind me. Go on. I’m listening.” Those words had been said directly into Yuri’s ear as Victor had stepped up behind the slightly smaller male and had wrapped his arms tightly around Yuri’s slender waist, resting his chin on Yuri shoulder and pulling him back against Victor’s broader chest. “Come, Yuri. After you move the desk. Then what would you do?”

 

               “I would push our beds together. It really doesn’t get much more involved than that.” Yuri was squirming a bit in Victor’s embrace now. The flash of confidence draining out of him the way it sometimes would when Victor would take him by surprise. “Oh, I suppose that still wouldn’t fix the problem completely, though. With these laminate floors, it would be easy for the beds to slide apart…”

 

               “Planning on doing a lot of moving around in them, are you?”

 

               “Vitya…” Yuri’s voice had taken on a warning tone now. “ _I’m_ a sound sleeper. _You’re_ the one that rolls around all night until you latch onto me. It’s going to be your ass on the floor.”

 

               “That could be a problem.” Victor places a soft kiss against Yuri’s neck before releasing the other man. He takes a step back, smirking as he can see the tips of Yuri’s ears burning bright red from his vantage point.

 

               As much as he loves Yuri’s idea, he had to admit, his boyfriend had a point. Victor always had been a restless sleeper, only settling once he had wrapped himself around the nearest soft object. Back home it had been Makkachin. Now it was Yuri. Even if he fell asleep with the other man in his arms from the start, it was inevitable one or the other would roll away in the night and Victor would toss and turn until he had Yuri right back where he wanted him.

 

               With the worn wooden frames and the slippery laminate flooring there was a very real chance Yuri was not kidding about Victor ending up falling through the space between the beds.

 

               Victor taps his chin with his index finger as he surveys the conundrum in front of him. If Yuri wants to push the beds together Victor is not going to stop him. Hell, he’s a little put out that he wasn’t the one to think of it in the first place. The very least he can do is be the one to come up with the solution.

 

               “I have an idea. We’re going to need to go to the store though. Maybe more than one store.” Victor runs his idea over in his mind one last time just to make sure he’s thought of every angle. “Yes, yes I think this will work. Quick, we need to find someone Spanish and get out of here.”

 

               “Why so quickly?” Yuri asks as Victor grabs his wrist and begins pulling him along.

 

               “Because it’s only a matter of time before Yurio explodes about something whatever poor sap is stuck with him for this month has done and he somehow always manages to find me to bear witness to his fit.” Victor releases Yuri long enough for the other man to lock the door behind them before taking hold and dragging him again. “If we time it right, he should be done long before we get back and we don’t have to run the risk of him deciding to camp in our room until one of us breaks and offers to switch with him.”

 

               “He’s not really that bad…” Yuri pauses, caught in his own thoughts for a moment. “Okay, he is that bad.”

 

               “Which is why we need to get out of here fast. I’m impressed we haven’t heard anything yet. Maybe he’s on a different floor this time.” Victor glances around the hall, but even though there are a few people he knows, there is no familiar head of blonde hair. “Do you know anyone here who is Spanish?”

 

               “Leo speaks Spanish.” Yuri answers and Victor shakes his head.

 

               “I don’t mean someone who just speaks Spanish. I mean someone who _is_ Spanish. A student that goes to school here. Who would know where we can find a shop that will have what we need.” Victor can tell Yuri is about to ask him what exactly it is they need. “You aren’t helping if the next words out of your mouth are not telling me which student we can go bother to find a shop.”

 

               “Isabella Yang goes to school here.” Yuri supplies the proper answer this time. “I have her number. If you’ll stop pulling on me for five seconds I can text her and see if she has any suggestions. It would help if I knew what I was asking her to help us find.”

 

               “Bedsheets and rope.”

 

               Yuri almost trips over his own feet.

 

               “What!?”

 

~  


               It took a bit longer than Victor wanted to find two stores that sold exactly what he was looking for, especially since Yuri had put his foot down and would only get directions a place that held one of the items Victor needed.

 

               “I don’t care what they are really for. There is absolutely no explanation that is going to sound good for why we need to pick up bedding and rope in one trip. I will ask her where we can find rope or where we can find bedding. Not both. Pick one.”

 

               Victor had to admit his boyfriend did have a bit of point when put that way, so they had been pointed towards the nearest hardware store as he liked their odds of finding a home good store on their own easier than that.

 

               It was rapidly approaching well past dinnertime by the time they were back into their dorm and moving furniture around again.

 

               They had left the door ajar, both to help keep the air flowing through the room as they toiled away at adjusting the surprisingly heavy furniture and to give them the availability to step out into the hallway and gain more space in order to avoid being crushed against a wall if needed. Since the door was open, Victor didn’t see or hear Phichit’s approach until the other man was already through the doorway.

 

               “What’s going on in here?” Phichit asked as Victor rolled out from where he currently lying underneath their combined beds, tying the legs together with the rope they’d managed to find. He smiled and waved, waiting for Phichit to do the same before ducking back under to finish his task.

 

               “We’re rearranging the room. What does it look like we’re doing?” Yuri’s voice sounded strained and there was the telltale scratch of wood against floor that let Victor know he was trying to shove the desk further into the corner again. There apparently was a bit of a rough patch in the laminate where Yuri’s bed had used to be, and it was causing him some difficulty. “Hey, can you grab the other end of this thing and help me move it against the wall?”

 

               “Sure.” Victor hears more noises, which he takes as Phichit moving across the room to help. He focuses on tying his knots as tightly as he can as the other two men grunt and curse on the other side of the room. “Why are you rearranging your dorm?”

 

               “Use your imagination.” Yuri’s tone is flat and unamused and Victor can hear Phichit trying and failing to hide his giggles. “You lift, I push. On the count of three. One, two, three!”

 

               Victor finishes his last knot and comes out from under the now double bed. He lurches to his feet as Yuri and Phichit let out triumphant shouts and the desk finally slides into place against the wall.

 

               “Perfect!” Victor claps his hands together and then grabs the plastic bag containing their new bedsheets. Between tying the legs of the beds together and slipping both mattresses into the same fitted sheet, they should be able to avoid having something shift apart in the middle of the night and Victor ending up on the floor. He hums to himself as he begins to make the bed.

 

               “Wow, you guys just aren’t even hiding it anymore are you?” Victor doesn’t even need to turn around to know the exact shade of red Yuri’s face has just turned. There is the sound of a hand hitting bare skin and Phichit lets out a startle yelp. “Sorry, sorry. I couldn’t help it.”

 

               “Did you come here for a reason or just to make fun of us?”

 

               “There was a reason, but I’m always grateful for the opportunity to tease you relentlessly.”

 

               Victor dumps the sheets on the bed as he keeps an ear on the conversation behind him. Staring down at the mattresses lying side by side in their frames he is struck by the realization that he is going to need a second pair of hands to make this work. He turns around to where Phichit and Yuri are both leaning against the desk.

 

               “There was an actual reason?” He asks, more to draw their attention back to him in preparation for asking Yuri to come help him make the bed than anything else.

 

               “Yes, Yurio was looking for you.” Phichit is grinning. If Victor didn’t know any better he would say things are entirely back to normal, but he does know better. He knows Phichit spent half the time in the airport in Switzerland hiding in a bathroom one terminal over because Yuri told him. “You apparently have blocked him on your phone so he sent an envoy.”

 

               “I blocked him on purpose. No matter what complaint he has about his new roommate, neither Yuri nor I are switching with him.” Victor gestured towards the lump of sheets sitting on the bed. “Yuri. Help me?”

 

               Yuri rolled his shoulders back and popped his neck before making his way over to grab one corner of the fitted sheet while Victor grabbed the other.

 

               Phichit watched as they struggled for a few minutes before finally getting the bed made.

 

               “I don’t think he wants to really switch this time. I think he just wants to bitch. He’s pulled Seung-Gil for this round. I know he’d rather throw himself face first into an overheating iron than admit it, but I’m pretty sure Seung-Gil scares him a bit. Should work out just fine.” Phichit shifts around from his perch on Yuri’s desk. “If you guys are done, do you want to go get a bite to eat? I’m famished.”

 

               Victor felt the stirring of an idea in the back of his mind. He shot a look at Yuri he hoped the other man would understand. If the slight inclination of his head was any indication his message had been received.

 

               It was time for them to put an end to this stupid Cold War between their friends once and for all.

 

               “Sure, moving all this junk around has made me hungry.” Yuri grabbed his messenger bag from where it was hanging off the back of a chair. “Victor?”

 

               “You go ahead. I should probably find Yurio before he breaks something.” It was a good excuse. Victor was fairly certain Yurio had latched onto Otabeck by this point, so that issue was most likely solved, but Phichit didn’t have to know that. “I can always catch up to you later if it doesn’t take too long.”

 

               “The administration thanks you for your sacrifice. I’ll text you once we find a place.” Yuri placed a quick kiss on his lips and then linked his arm through Phichit’s and they were off.

 

               Victor counted slowly to thirty just in case and then left to go locate Chris.

 

~

 

               “ _Come on, darling, the night is young and so are we!_ ” Victor burst into the room Chris was sharing with Emil. Luckily it seemed as though the Czech man was out and about somewhere and Chris was alone for the time being. “ _Up, up. Let’s explore!_ ”

 

               “Where’s your attachment?” Chris looked up from where he was sprawled out on his bed. “No, wait. It’s more like you are his attachment. In that case, where’s your host?”

 

               “I don’t know.” Victor wasn’t exactly lying, he told himself. He didn’t know where Yuri was. His boyfriend hadn’t texted him a location yet. “We spent most of the afternoon rearranging our dorm room so that our beds could be pushed together and I drifted off after we were done. Woke up and he was gone. Lucky you, that means you get me for the night!”

 

               “You pushed your beds together?” That seemed to draw out a spark of the old Chris. It cause him to sit up in any case. Victor counted that as progress. “You going to finally sleep with him?”

 

               “Wouldn’t you like to know?” Victor raised his eyebrow and smirked. His phone buzzed in his pocket. Perfect. “Stop sulking and come on. I let it go because of finals and all that, but your time is up. We are getting you back out into the world kicking and screaming if needed. It’s not like the others aren’t used to people throwing temper tantrums in the middle of the dorm thanks to Yurio so no one is going to come to your rescue.”

 

               “Fair enough.” Chris lurched to his feet, stumbling a bit before getting his center of balance back. “You’re going to make me talk about it, too aren’t you?”

 

               “Most certainly.” Victor chirped happily. He paused, leant back so he could look down either side of the empty hallway and changed his mind. Instead of going out, he took a large step further into the room and closed the door behind him. “On second thought, why have this conversation out there? Here is fine.”

 

               “Victor… I don’t _want_ to talk about it.” All the progress was lost as Chris flopped back down on the bed and covered his face with his hands. “There’s not even really anything to say. I got my heart broken twice in a row and I’m an idiot for thinking I was getting what I wanted in either case.”

 

               “That’s not true. Not the part about you being an idiot. That part is true. The part about you not getting what you wanted.” Victor leant back against the door. He was more than a little concerned Chris might try and make a break for it. “You could still get what you want if you are willing to actually fucking try for it.”

 

               “Says the person who actually got what he wanted.” Victor knew Chris was hurting and the insult was just a result of his lashing out. That didn’t mean it didn’t sting a little.

 

               “Because I worked for it. Because I didn’t just roll over when Yuri ran away from me full tilt.” Victor pointed out. “I could have let him go, but I didn’t. It was the scariest thing I have ever done in my entire life, but I knew I wanted Yuri too much not to give it a shot. Do you want Phichit? Really want him? Not just as something to help you get over Julien, but as his own person?”

 

               Chris groaned in response and slid his hands down his face in favor of staring up blankly at the ceiling. Victor watched patiently. He had absolutely no idea what he was doing. Victor never had been the best when it came to comforting distraught people, but spending more time with Yuri who internalized every tiny thing had made him a lot more patient and observant.

 

               “Can I tell you a secret?” Chris asked, still not looking away from the crack in the ceiling that had caught his attention. “A real one. Like a ‘take it to the grave’ secret?”

 

               “Yes.”

 

               “I wanted Phichit way before I ever broke up with Julien.” Chris sighed, his chest rising and falling sharply with the motion. “I actually felt fucking _relieved_ when Julien broke up with me. I felt relieved and then I felt so guilty. Like I was doing all three of us a disservice by feeling that way, but it was the truth. It was exactly how I felt. I… Didn’t handle anything after that point very well because of it. As though having a shitty excuse makes up for anything that happened.”

 

               “You know who you should really be telling that secret to, right?” Victor asked. Chris swallowed hard and nodded. “If it makes you feel better, I have it on good authority that you were not the only one harboring inappropriate feelings during the time you were long distance with Julien.”

 

               “Really?” Ah, ha! There is was. The tinge of hope in Chris’ voice. A hint of his old sparkle in his eyes. “You aren’t just telling me that so I’ll get up and go out with you, right?”

 

               “Nope!” Victor smiled wide. “I’m dating his best friend, after all. I know things. Things you are not going to tell Yuri I told you because I am really hoping to have sex with him sometime soon and you blabbing could seriously put that in jeopardy.”

 

               ”What kind of a best friend would I be if I betrayed your generosity in such a way?” Chris looked downright offended before laughing. “This smells like a trap. Want to go ahead and text Yuri and let him know we’re on our way?”

 

               “See? I knew I couldn’t pull one over on you. Aren’t you glad I didn’t try?” Victor happily pulled his phone from his pocket, scanning the location Yuri had provided and sending him a message to let him know their ETA. “Let’s go bag you a man!”

 

               “Victor…”

 

               “Too soon?”

 

               “Too soon.”

 

~

 

               Phichit was sucking on his straw and roughly a million kilometers away from the table on the patio of the café they’d found a few blocks from campus. Yuri watched him with a frown. His friend was his normal self in public, even around Victor, but whenever they were alone together Phichit never failed to slip back into what could only be described as melancholy.

 

               It was really starting to freak Yuri out.

 

               Sure, this wasn’t the first time he’d seen Phichit down. They’d roomed together for two years before this. There had been boyfriend troubles and breakups and four am ice cream runs. All-nighters where they both ended up curled on the floor near to tears and ready to run from the mountain of schoolwork that was piling up. Yuri had watched from a hole in his blanket nest the first time Phichit had witnessed one of his panic attacks and watched his friend almost have one of his own because he didn’t know what to do or say to make Yuri feel better.

 

               So, quiet, reserved Phichit, while not normal, was still nothing he hadn’t seen before. Despondent Phichit, that was new and Yuri was having a hard time wrapping his head around this new façade.

 

               “You need to talk to him.” Yuri could have been less direct. Could have done the thing he usually did when trying to comfort someone and ignore the problem completely. Only, he’d been doing that for a week and a half now and it clearly wasn’t getting him anywhere. “Even if it’s just to let him know he doesn’t stand a chance with you. You still owe him at least that much.”

 

               “I know.” Phichit released his straw and chose to stare at the spot immediately to the left of Yuri’s ear. “I just don’t know what to say. I don’t know if I have anything _to_ say.”

 

               “I guess there is a first time for everything.”

 

               “Yuri!” Now Phichit was looking at him. Yuri felt a wriggle of guilt in his stomach, but he pushed it down. Caving now was going to put them back into the stalemate from before and he had a limited amount of time to try and get Phichit in a better mood before Chris and Victor got there. “Hanging around Victor has changed you, my friend.”

 

               “You and I both know I had this sarcastic side long before Victor.” Yuri pointed out. “He’s just inspiring me to bring it out a lot more. Personally, I think it’s an overall good thing. If you were feeling more like yourself, you’d love it.”

 

               “That may be true.” Phichit pursed his lips and shuffled around. “Do we have to talk about this now?”

 

               “Yes.” Yuri pulled out his phone and checked the time. “Victor’s going to be here sooner than we think. I have now learned to never underestimate his desire to be firmly attached to my hip at all times. If you want to have this conversation with me, it’s going to have to be now.”

 

               “I can’t think of anything I haven’t already said to you.”

 

               “Fine, fine. Do you want to hear something I know that you don’t instead?” Yuri asked, knowing it was just vague enough to grab Phichit’s attention. The Thai man bit his bottom lip but nodded. “For what it’s worth, Chris has like you for a long time. Like before Julien even broke up with him. I get the feeling you aren’t just a rebound.”

 

               “How do you know that?” Phichit looked at him with suspicion very clear in his face. That made sense. Yuri wouldn’t have believed him either if their positions were swapped.

 

               “Victor told me.” Thank goodness for Victor and his constant texting habit. It hadn’t even drawn Phichit's suspicion when a novel had come through Yuri’s text messaging program ten minutes ago to let him know exactly where they stood on the Chris front. “It would sound a lot more convincing if it was Chris saying it and not me, though.”

 

               “I’m being set up.”

 

               “What? What do you mean?” Yuri’s confusion was genuine and he played it up for all it was worth. He’d been so careful. How could Phichit know? “I’m not setting you up.”

 

               “Maybe not right now, but you will.” Phichit’s eyes were narrowed now, staring at Yuri like he was able to see through his skull and into his thoughts. “You’re my best friend. I know you have a devious side. I also know Victor brings out your devious side more and more every day in a way that makes me green with envy sometimes. I’m going to be set up, and very soon.”

 

               “Oh! But why not right now? Right now feels good to me!” Victor’s cheerful voice heralded his arrival and Yuri couldn’t help but smile in return even though he knew the situation was about to get rocky. All the blood drained from Phichit’s face as he spun around to find Chris and Victor standing behind him. Chris looking sheepish and Victor smiling and waving. If he had a tail, he’d be wagging it. “Yuri! We have things to do!”

 

               “We do? What things?” Yuri asked as he slid out of his chair and Chris took his place.

 

               “I don’t know. We’ll think of something. Have you eaten yet?” Yuri allowed Victor to wrap an arm around his shoulder as they walked away and he slid his own arm around the small of Victor’s back and rested a hand on his opposite hip. He risked a glance back at the table they’d just left only to find Phichit glaring at their retreating backs. Ah, well, Phichit would forgive him eventually.

 

               “Yes, but just something small. I didn’t think you’d take so long.” Victor placed a kiss on his cheek and they left the light of the overhang in front of the café and meandered away. Yuri squeezed with the hand he had on Victor’s hip. “Why did you take so long?”

 

               “Chris didn’t want to leave his room. We had to have a heart to heart first.” Victor hummed under his breath. “What do you want to do? I can’t say I planned too terribly far ahead with this. You know how a lack of planning and foresight are one of my main character flaws.”

 

               “Yes, and I love you for it. Besides, I have more than enough skill in the planning and foresight department to cover the both of us.” Victor chuckled and Yuri mentally ran through a list of options. Option number one was to go back to the dorm and test out the integrity of their modified double bed.

 

               As tempting as it was, and as much as he knew Victor would have followed him back there in a heartbeat, Yuri understood that Victor was an overtly romantic person and they did have a string of interrupted and lackluster dates behind them.

 

               So, for now, the bed could wait.

 

               He owed Victor a date.

 

~

 

               “How did you know about this place?”

 

               When Yuri had suggested they got out for a romantic dinner instead of just grabbing something to go and heading back to the dorms, Victor had been more than happy to let him lead the way, assuming they would just find another small café like the one they’d just left and be done with it. He had not thought for a second that Yuri would have called a cab and asked to be taken to a restaurant on the beach that had an outdoor deck with a phenomenal view of the ocean.

 

               “I-I I may have researched different places to eat throughout Barcelona just in case I was out and about and got hungry.” Yuri was looking down at the tabletop in order to hide his blush. “I didn’t think I would have cause to come here, but after Russia I decided to keep it marked in my phone just in case.”

 

               Victor ran his eyes over the dim lighting, the candles on the tables, the soft music and chatter coming from those dining around them. The breeze smelled like salt and he could hear the gentle sounds of the waves crashing against the beach, gulls crying in the distance. Yuri sitting across from him sporting a shy grin and a blush, the flickering flames from the tealight between them reflecting off his glasses.

 

               He couldn’t think of a more perfect place to be.

 

               “You really are prepared for anything. Even spur of the moment dates in the middle of a city you’ve been in for about seven hours.” Victor smiles softly and reached across the table to take Yuri’s hand in his. “You never cease to surprise me.”

 

               “This time I wasn’t surprising you on purpose, although it is a rather pleasant side effect.” Sighing, Yuri used his free hand to grab his water glass and take a sip. “The preparedness… It’s… It’s a thing I do to help with my anxiety to be honest.”

 

               “Oh.”

 

               Victor visibly deflates. They’ve never really talked about Yuri’s anxiety since becoming serious. Never really talked about it other than that one time in China now that Victor thought about it. So far, Victor felt as though he’d been pretty good at reading Yuri’s moods and reacting accordingly, but maybe he hadn’t been paying as much attention as he thought to have missed this.

 

               There is a reassuring squeeze against his hand before Yuri releases it and sits back.

 

               Victor wants to say something. He’s not sure what. Definitely something more eloquent than ‘Oh’, but before he can get the chance, they are interrupted by a waiter bringing them their meals.

 

               Silence descends over their table as they sort out their food and take a few bites. It tastes good. Victor is sure it would taste better without the silence.

 

               “Sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.” Yuri sounds normal. Like his usual self. Like there was nothing wrong at all. Victor was now coming to realize that in his mind, there probably wasn’t. It didn’t strike Victor that too terribly many people wanted to have this conversation. “It’s not important.”

 

               “It is important. I was just… I’m not great at handling these kinds of conversations.” It was easy to admit that. Easier than it should have been, but Yuri was being honest with him. Victor needed to be honest right back. That was how this should always work. “I don’t know if I ever will be, but I want to be. If you want to talk about it, I want to listen. You know, if you think it would help.”

 

               “I don’t know if it’ll help. Might make it worse.” Yuri poked at his food with his fork absentmindedly. “Don’t worry about me.”

 

               “You don’t have to hide it from me.” That was something Victor was certain of. Yuri was someone who hid from the world and only showed it what he thought it wanted to see. He proved it time and time again and Victor was ready to make his stand. He never wanted to be someone Yuri felt like he needed to hide from ever again. “You always want me to be myself. That’s a two-way street. You have to be yourself in return.”

 

               Another silence. This one is more contemplative than awkward. Victor takes a bite of his roasted chicken for something to do while Yuri decides what to say. Decides whether he trusts Victor enough to let him in.

 

               “I don’t like being surprised… Or, well, that’s not really right. I don’t like it if I am caught unprepared and surprised in a bad way. I don’t mind it If it’s someone I trust.” Yuri looks Victor in the eye for the first time since the conversation had begun. “I don’t mind at all when you surprise me. That’s totally different. You only ever do it to make me feel good. To make me feel special.”

 

               “I find it helps me when I feel prepared for anything that can happen. Logically, I know that there isn’t a way to prepare for everything, but I do what I can. I researched the countries on this trip. I picked up simple phrases in the languages I knew I was most likely to encounter, and I spent so much time on Google Maps my vision went blurry and I was concerned I was going to need to up the prescription on my lenses.” Yuri lets out a self-depreciating chuckle. “I don’t _get_ lost. I don’t _get_ into a situation where I don’t have an escape route. It’s a lot of the reason why I panicked after Chris’ party. It’s why I don’t like to drink when I’m not sure about the people I’m drinking with. Anything could happen.”

 

               “Oh…” Alright, Victor really needed to stop saying ‘Oh’ as though it was the only bit of English he was capable of understanding. He tried again. “I mean… I didn’t… I didn’t want to make you feel uncomfortable. On Phichit’s birthday? When I pushed you to drink? I promise I didn’t know…”

 

               “Vitya, you don’t have to treat me like I’m made of glass just because I go through periods of my brain shutting down. This is kind of why I didn’t want to talk to you about it before now. I was afraid you’d try to change yourself.” The look on Yuri’s face was soft and reassuring. Almost as though he knew Victor was mentally panicking about sticking his foot in his mouth again. “Most people do, once they find out how deep the rabbit hole goes. Phichit was the first person in a long time who didn’t. Mari doesn’t either, but my parents do sometimes. I think they don’t even realize they are, but it happens.”

 

               “Just… Please don’t start doing it, too. I like the way you think of me. I like the person you think I am. When I’m with you I feel like I can be strong. That I can be the one in control.” Yuri took a deep breath. “They aren’t going to go away. The bad feelings. I’m still going to end up panicking every so often, but knowing you are still going to be there on the other side… It helps. A lot. I don’t think I’ve ever really thanked you for that.”

 

               “I wouldn’t blame you if you did want to leave, though…”

 

               “Never.”

 

               The force behind that one word surprised even Victor. It had been said without thinking. Without any deliberation or preparation. When faced with the insinuation that he could ever be so petty as to leave Yuri because of his anxiety, Victor’s rational mind didn’t even need to be consulted. There was only one answer, and that was the answer he had given.

 

               Yuri let out a stunned huff of air and smiled that smile Victor hated. The one that made him look so sad, like he’d already given up.

 

               “Thanks, but you don’t have to…”

 

               “I mean it.” Victor wanted to growl in frustration, but he held it back. There had to be a way to get Yuri to see he wasn’t just saying what he thought the Japanese man wanted to hear for the sake of avoiding conflict. “I’m not going to leave you. You’re stuck with me for the long haul.”

 

               Yuri looked at him, then. There was an intensity in his brown eyes that made Victor want to instinctively curl away, but he held firm. Tilted his chin up and returned Yuri’s intense stare with one of his own. Challenging him to try and read anything other than sincerity in his words and actions.

 

               After an agonizingly long minute of this, Yuri spoke first.

 

               “What if I don’t want to be stuck with you?” The bottom fell out of Victor’s stomach and for a brief moment he couldn’t breathe. Then he saw the twinkle in Yuri’s eye and the smirk on his face.

 

               “Wow… That was a mean joke, Yuri Katsuki.” Yuri laughed then, a real one. Victor couldn’t help but laugh in return, the mood instantly lightened. “Everyone has you pegged as this sweet, innocent boy, but I know the truth now.”

 

               “Sorry, sorry. I couldn’t help it. You just looked so serious and I just… I’m sorry!”

 

               They were both laughing so hard it was becoming difficult to form words. It felt good to laugh like this. Victor hadn’t been doing nearly enough of it these days, and it took some time for them to both calm down enough to be able to speak again.

 

               “Well, Phichit has told me he always warned you about what could happen if you feed strays.” Victor winks, which sets off another fit of giggles from Yuri’s side of the table. “You should have listen to him when you had the chance.”

 

               “No, that is one piece of advice I’m glad I didn’t listen to him for.” Yuri reaches across the table with both hands and Victor doesn’t even hesitate to take them in his own. “Speaking of Phichit, you haven’t gotten any messages from Chris, have you?”

 

               Victor removes his hands from Yuri’s grasp reluctantly in favor of digging through his pockets for his phone. He checks to make sure he hasn’t missed anything before placing it face up on the table. Across the way, Yuri does the same.

 

               “Nothing?”

 

               “Nothing.” Yuri confirms. “No news could be good news.”

 

               “True.” Victor doesn’t say what they are both most certainly thinking. No news could be good news, but it could also be bad news. “If they want our input, they know how to reach us. We should enjoy our date.”

 

               “Agreed.”

 

               Victor allowed himself to relax back into his chair as the conversation returned to their usual easy back and forth. June in Barcelona was far from stifling so far, but the air was warm even here along the coastline, and the chill breeze blowing in off the waves caused pleasant tingles to run up Victor’s spine.

 

               When they were done with dinner, Victor was able to convince Yuri to take a walk with him along the beach. They tucked their shoes and socks away underneath a set of rickety stairs that lead from the street down to the sandy shore. The sand was cool on their bare feet, but not unbearably so. With the breeze blowing it was just comfortable enough so long as they remained wrapped in their sweaters and pressed against each other to share heat.

 

               Victor watched as Yuri threaded his fingers through Victor’s own. They both stared down at their intertwined hands as they walked along. The moonlight was glinting off the frames of Yuri’s glasses and playing off the sheen in his dark hair. Victor ran his thumb along their knuckles.

 

               “I can’t believe how lucky I am.”

 

               Yuri jumped at Victor words, looking up at his boyfriend with those wonderful eyes widened in surprise.

 

               “ _You’re_ lucky?” Yuri make a strange noise in the back of his throat as though he were choking on air. “I-I don’t even know where to start with that. You are not only the most handsome man I have ever met, but you are also, kind, funny, just the right amount of dorky, patient, understanding, and somehow, for some reason, you love me. I have somehow managed to make you love me and you think _you_ are the lucky one?”

 

               “Of course, I’m the lucky one.” Victor gently brushed aside where Yuri’s bangs were falling into his eyes. “Do you want to know why?”

 

               Yuri, words apparently failing him for the time being, nodded slowly.

 

               “I’m the lucky one because you, Yuri Katsuki, are amazing. You are kinder than I am by far and completely selfless. You are smart, attentive and a genuinely good person. And you are gorgeous. Absolutely, mind numbingly gorgeous.” Victor stroked Yuri’s cheek with his thumb, reveling in the swell of joy that washed through him as the other man leant into the touch. “You are determined and strong and you push me to be better person every single day whether you mean to or not. So, I am going to have to politely refute your claim that you are lucky to have me because whoever could get you to love them would be the luckiest person in the universe and, impossibly, somehow that person is me.”

 

               “Vitya…”

 

               As Yuri whispered his name, Victor increased the pressure of his grip against his jaw and pulled Yuri’s face up to his and pressed their lips together.

 

               It was the kind of kiss that set off sparks behind Victor’s closed eyelids. The kind that was so impossibly soft and deep and perfect. The hand that had been holding Yuri’s moved to meet its mate and tangled in the silken strands of Yuri’s hair, holding him in place. It felt like an electric shock was radiating from every point of contact between them and Victor gasped into the kiss as he felt Yuri’s chilled hands slide up under his sweater and shirt to grip at the bare skin of his waist.

 

               A sudden shock of cold washed over his ankles and they both let out rather unmanly squeals and jumped apart, laughing as they nearly tripped over each other in their hurry to get their feet out of the cold water that was now swirling around their ankles.

 

               “Now we’re being interrupted by the ocean?” Yuri pulled Victor even further away from the water line.

 

               “If the ocean wants to pull us apart, it’s going to have to try harder than that.” Victor pressed kisses against Yuri’s forehead, cheek, nose, lips. He grinned as an idea struck him. “Dance with me!”  


               “What?” If Yuri wanted to protest, Victor didn’t give him the chance. He grabbed Yuri’s arm with one hand, tugging him back towards the water while pulling his phone out with the other. He opened his music application and played the first song on the playlist.

 

               It was a waltz.

 

               Tucking his phone back into his pocket, he placed his free hand on Yuri’s waist and lead him into the first movements of the dance. Yuri graceful as always, fell into sync easily. They whirled around in the moonlight, spinning and dipping as their bare feet splashed through the tide and wet sand was flung everywhere as Victor lifted Yuri up by the waist and spun him around.

 

               They danced for what felt like hours. Laughing and talking as Victor’s phone continued to play on in the background. Eventually their feet went numb from the cold water and they stumbled along the beach and back up to where they had left their shoes. Victor held Yuri tight, frowning a bit as the other man shivered in his arms.

 

               “Are you cold?”

 

               Yuri looked up at him then, brown eyes glinting with something Victor hadn’t noticed before. Something that looked like desire.

 

               “Not at all.”

 

               A moment ago Victor had wished to dance on the beach with Yuri in his arms for the rest of his life.

 

               Now, he felt as though they couldn’t get back to the dorm soon enough.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> I'm kind of not over the beach. So we're going to spend this chapter on the beach.
> 
> Also, resolution for Chris and Phichit!

               June – Spain

 

               With classes done for the semester, other than their Cultural Studies class which was year-round with no breaks, Victor found himself looking forward to being able to be a true tourist at long last. Barcelona in the summertime seemed like the perfect place for it, too.

 

               They end up on the beach Yuri and he had discovered the night before the next afternoon. This time with their extended friend group, minus JJ and Isabella, along with them.

 

               Most of the group dumps their things on the sand and strips down to swimsuits, running full speed into the ocean. Victor, Yuri, Phichit, and Chris hang back, choosing to lay out large beach towels and set up some umbrellas they rented from a shop on the seawall behind them. Sitting area assembled, they plop down onto their beach towels, Yuri tucked in under Victor’s arm and Phichit and Chris sitting with their legs crossed and knees touching on their own towel.

 

               “So, I take it the two of you have worked something out?” Victor raises an eyebrow as he runs his eyes over the much more relaxed and intimate body language displayed by his friends.

 

               “We have.” Chris confirms, all smiles and warmth again. Victor is thrilled to have his friend back at long last. “We’ve decided to take a page out of your book and take a few steps back. Do the whole friends to boyfriends to… Whatever stage you guys are at now. That route.”

 

               “What stage _are_ you at now?” Phichit asks, his grey eyes sparkling mischievously and focusing on Yuri, the one most likely to fall into stuttering embarrassment. Phichit is rewarded for his efforts by drawing a bright, red coloring to Yuri’s cheeks and causing the other man to shift around in Victor’s loose embrace while suddenly finding it difficult to maintain eye contact. “Oh, come on, Yuri. I’m only asking for purely scientific purposes. How are we supposed to know what to aim for if we don’t know where you’re at?”

 

               “Wouldn’t you like to know?” Victor came to Yuri’s rescue with a wink and a satisfied smirk. Phichit and Chris’ eyes narrowed, but before they could press, Victor cut them off. He knew his friends would find out all the gory details eventually, but, for now, Victor wanted to keep it to himself. “So, you’re friends again?”

 

               “Or something like it.” Chris shrugged. “We’re like that level between friends and boyfriends where everything is weird and awkward. It’s been interesting.”

 

               “I can imagine.” Victor very vividly remembers that step. The place where he had been almost too scared to even touch Yuri just in case that wasn’t what the other man wanted or needed from him at the time. “If it is any consolation, that level only feels like it lasts forever.”

 

               “We’re thinking it won’t last for more than a few days. I mean, we’ve already seen each other naked and all that.” Phichit was still focusing his full attention on Yuri. Why the Thai man thought Yuri was the weaker link between the two was a mystery to him. Yuri was incredibly tight lipped when out in what he deemed as ‘public’. Victor was far more likely to let something slip without thinking about it. “Don’t you think that makes people more comfortable with each other, Yuri? Seeing the other person naked.”

 

               “I saw Victor naked months ago. In Japan.” Yuri’s tone is dry and Victor holds back a snort of laughter. “I could have sworn I told you that.”

 

               “Onsens don’t count! Everyone’s naked there!” Phichit was pouting now and Yuri mumbled something under his breath in Japanese that Victor was sure was something like a warning. “Fine, fine. Don’t tell me. You know I’ll find out eventually.”

 

               “Yes, but ‘eventually’ isn’t right now out here in front of all of our friends.” Yuri shot back. “As I know what your next argument is going to be, yes, I do count this as in front of our friends even if they are all off frolicking in the ocean. Someone is bound to make their way to back us soon or later.”

 

               “ _Can you tell me in French? He still doesn’t speak French, right?_ ”

 

               “ _He does not, but, while I may be an idiot, he is not._ ” There’s a brief flash of pain as Yuri pinches him in the side through his t-shirt. He knows a warning when he feels it. “That was a nice try, Chris. We’re still not saying anything.”

 

               “Ah, can’t blame a man for trying.” If Chris is truly disappointed, he isn’t showing it. In fact, he looks happier than Victor has seen him in a long time. Perhaps the happiest. It’s funny how you never notice how fake someone’s smiles are until you’ve seen the real thing. “Can you believe they still have us going to class on what should very well be our summer holiday?”

 

               “It’s not so bad. Just a two hour lecture twice a week.” Phichit bumps his shoulder against Chris’, causing another one of those real smiles that makes Chris’ face light up. Victor wonders if that’s what his face looks like when he looks at Yuri. He sure hopes so. “The professor seems nice, too. I get the feeling he wants to be anywhere but teaching a lecture in the middle of a beautiful Spanish summer. Mark my words, those two hour lectures are going to get closer and close to an hour long each session.”

 

               “Isabella invited us to go to Madrid next weekend. Her parents own some hotels there and they offered to let us all have free rein of their penthouse spaces before the close them down for renovations.” Yuri sits up and Victor follows his example. It’s a little too hot for cuddling, but he doesn’t like the thought of not touching Yuri at all, so he makes due with a hand on the other boy’s knee. “I was supposed to ask yesterday, but with the whole drama and betraying the friendship Phichit and I share, I forgot.”

 

               “I am going to get you back for that one of these days. Don’t think you’re out of the woods just because everything worked out.” Yuri rolls his eyes, but doesn’t say anything so Phichit continues. “I mean, I’ll have to check my schedule. It’s pretty full, but I’m sure I can find the time.”

 

               “Why would she think to invite us?” Chris asks. “Not that I’m complaining or declining the invitation, I just wasn’t aware we were that close with her.”

 

               “I have recently discovered that Yuri has the contact information for every single student on this trip as well as being on first name basis with all of them as well.” That had been a surprise at first, but now that Victor had been given a more in depth look into exactly how Yuri’s anxiety functioned, it made a lot more sense. Just another way to control any outcome. Another way to make sure that no matter where he was, he would know someone and be familiar enough with them that he could at least stay grounded until he could get back to a safe space. “I’m not going to lie, it’s convenient.”

 

               “She’s a nice person. You should talk to her one on one sometime.”

 

               “She is a nice person. She doesn’t mind at all when you interrupt her unpacking to have her give you directions to the nearest hardware store.” That wasn’t a lie. Victor had barely spoken to her before yesterday, but she hadn’t even flinched when Yuri had asked for a favor and kept any follow up questions to a bare minimum. “Aside from a questionable taste in men, I like her.”

 

               “JJ isn’t so bad either.” Yuri pinched Victor in the side again. “You would know that if you wouldn’t keep getting so distracted by me anytime we go anywhere.”

 

               “Maybe you should stop being so distracting, then.” Victor places a light kiss on Yuri’s cloth covered shoulder. “I know it’s going to be quite a challenge, but I’m sure you’ll do your best.”

 

               “Yes! I got that on camera!” Victor hadn’t even noticed Phichit had his phone out until right that second.

 

               “See? Distracting.” Victor smiled even as Yuri shook his head.

 

               “Don’t keep blaming your poor attention span on me.”

 

               “ **Hey! Are you idiots just going to keep sitting over there like lumps on a log or are you going to have some fun?** ” Victor looked up in time to see Yurio jog over to them, water dripping off his blonde hair and arms crossed over his chest. “ **Come on. Otabeck brought a ball. If the four of you come out we’ll have enough for even teams of six to play some water volleyball** ”

 

               “He does know we don’t speak Russian, right?” Chris asked.

 

               “He does. I don’t think he cares.” Phichit chuckled.

 

               “He is standing right the fuck here.” Yurio actually didn’t growl this time. Victor supposed that was progress. “Come on!”

 

               “We have been invited to play water volleyball. Apparently, we are the only things preventing the teams from being properly split.” Yurio offered them a final middle finger salute before spinning around and running back out to where the others are throwing around a ball about knee deep in the waves. “Looks like fun.”

 

               “We should put on sunscreen first.” Yuri scoots away from Victor’s side to dig in his bag. “Especially you, Victor. You’re so pale. I’ll bet you burn easy.”

 

               “I wouldn’t know. I live in the land of eternal winter.” He accepts the tube of sun lotion offered to him. “Thanks for thinking to bring this. I definitely would have forgotten and then totally regretted it afterwards. I obviously managed to survive before I met you, but for the life of me I can’t imagine how.”

 

               Yuri hummed in agreement before setting about getting himself ready to go meet their friends out in the water. In the corner of Victor’s peripheral vision, he saw Chris and Phichit doing the same.

 

               Victor pulled his shirt off and tossed it to the side, squeezing a dollop of the lotion into the palm of his hand before handing to tube to Yuri and focusing on rubbing it over every bit of his torso that he could reach. The last thing he wanted to was to spend the next few days in agony because of an inopportune sunburn.

 

               “Can you get my back, Yuri? I can’t seem to reach.”

 

               That was not strictly true. Victor was very flexible and perfectly capable of reaching his own back. He was also aware that Yuri was aware of this fact, but Yuri didn’t call his bluff. He simply motioned for Victor to turn around so that he could do as he was asked.

 

               “Holy shit! Are those scratch marks?”

 

               “Yuri, I didn’t know you had it in you! Good job!”

 

               “Son of a bitch.”

 

~

 

               By the time they had made it out to the water, Yurio had already named himself team captain and had conscripted Otabeck for his team.

 

               “Who wants to head up the other team and get their asses handed to them?” Yurio tossed to ball up in the air and caught it with one hand. Repeating the motion as he glared at each person assembled in turn.

 

               “I’ll gladly accept the challenge!” Phichit had that look on his face that Victor was fast coming to realize he had an ace hidden up his sleeve. “Since you’ve already picked Otabeck, I’ll make my first choice Yuri.”

 

               “Ha! Good luck with that.” Yurio scoffed and scanned the small crowd again. “Fine, then I choose Seung-Gil. Because he’s not annoying.”

 

               Chris was Phichit’s next pick.

 

               Yurio chose Emil. “Because you and Victor are the only tall ones left and I can’t choose Victor because he’ll be a liability with Yuri on the other side.”

 

               As much as he wanted to protest, Victor had to admit that was a very astute observation and the conundrum of which team he would be on was instantly solved by Phichit choosing him thereafter.

 

               Phichit ended up with Sara and Michele. Well, he’d really only wanted Sara, but Michele threw a fit about needing to be on the same team as his sister. Yurio, clearly not wanting to deal with Michele’s dramatics agreed to the double pick and ended up with Leo and Guang Hong on his team.

 

               “You know you didn’t have to pick us just because we’re your friends, right?” Victor whispered to Phichit they watched Emil and Chris struggle to get everything set up as Otabeck had not only brought a ball, but also a net that had weighted legs that could be set up without floating around with the push and pull of the waves.

 

               “Oh, I only picked you for the same reason Yurio _didn’t_ pick you. Yuri would be totally distracted with you on the other side.” Phichit had that look in his eye again. The look that made Victor think the Thai man knew something Victor didn’t and that the Russian was about to be in for a surprise. “Trust me, it is in my best interest to make sure Yuri is not even the tiniest bit distracted. As you are about to find out, he has a rather vicious competitive streak.”

 

               Before Victor could ask the other man to elaborate the net was set up and it was time to fall into their lines and get the game underway.

 

               Since playing had been Yurio’s idea and the ball belonged to someone on his team, he proclaimed they would be serving first and Emil took the ball to the general area that could be considered the ‘back’ of the court. How they were going to determine was in or out of bounds was apparently something they were going to have to make up on the fly.

 

               It wasn’t long before Victor realized that Phichit had been understating Yuri’s competitive streak as ‘vicious’ didn’t seem to quite cover it.

 

               It took them all a minute to get used to the shifting of the wet sand beneath their feet and the tug of the water around their calves, but Yuri’s grace and poise meant he recovered a lot sooner than some of the other and once he’d found his center of balance he was off to the races and leaving everyone else behind him in the dust.

 

               Victor hadn’t even known the other man could jump that high.

 

               Or that he could be so brutal.

 

               “Fuck!” Yurio shouted as he lunged for another well placed spike delivered by Yuri. The blonde Russian ending up with nothing but a face full of seawater for his efforts. “Where did you learn to fucking jump like that?”

 

               “Ballet. Which, by that token, should mean that you should be a little better than this, shouldn’t you Yurio?”

 

               Victor also hadn’t known Yuri was an unapologetic trash talker, but he was not going to stop it now.

 

               “Surprised?” Phichit muttered as he and Victor traded spots since it was Victor’s turn to serve.

 

               “Pleasantly.” Victor returned the devious grin Phichit sent him and turned back to the playing field. With Yuri on the front row he now had an excellent viewed of a tanned and well-muscled back as well as Yuri’s glorious ass.

 

               It seemed as though Yuri’s competitive spirit was catching and as more and more of the group found their footing, the game heated up and the trash talk, in various languages, heated up on both sides.

 

               “ **Get that weak ass shit out of my face, Nikiforov!** ” Yurio had blocked a particularly awkward spike from Victor that had caused the other Russian to land ass first in the water.

 

               Yuri yelled something in Japanese from behind him, though whether it was directed at him or Yurio, he wasn’t quite sure. From the intense scowl on Yurio’s face, he assumed Yuri must have been aiming it at his opponent and not his boyfriend.

 

               “ _Come on, my love. Let’s get back on our feet._ ” Chris grabbed him under the arm and helped lift him back up as they shifted around in preparation for Leo to take his turn to serve. “ _Your lover is awfully chatty today._ ”

 

               “ _I know. Isn’t it the sexiest thing you have ever heard?_ ” Victor couldn’t even be put out by the fact that Yurio had probably been trying to break his nose with that last block if Victor hadn’t allowed gravity to do its job and help him avoid it. He wanted to win, but he wasn’t insane. This was not the Olympics after all. “ _I have absolutely no idea what he’s saying!_ ”

 

               “ _I’m particularly enamored with his friend at the moment. I have to say that Thai is my new favorite language._ ”

 

               A loud shout in what Victor assumed was Chinese, since it had come out of Guang Hong’s mouth, brought him back to the present and he launched himself back into the game, ducking out of the way as Yuri called out to return where Guang Hong had lobbed the ball back over onto their side.

 

               The game ended in a tie, much to Yuri and Yurio’s combined chagrin.

 

               “ **One more serve. To break the tie. We can’t just leave it like this.** ”

 

               “ **Yura, if we keep this up someone is going to drown.** ” Otabeck was helping Victor take down the net while Yurio pouted at his side and the others made their way back to their things.

 

               “ **Yes, but that someone isn’t going to be me so I don’t care**.”

 

               “ **That someone could be you. My Yuri was kicking your ass.** ” Victor ended up with saltwater up his nose as Yurio splashed water in his face for his comment.

 

               “If he’s saying he wants a rematch, let him know to name the time and place and I’ll be there.” Yuri was sitting in the shallows catching his breath. The water line was just over his legs and splashing against his waist, the water rising up over his toned stomach with each swell of the tide. His hair was wet and plastered against his skull, bright summer sun sparkling off the droplets of water dripping from the inky strands.

 

               It was suddenly much more difficult for him to swallow around the dryness in his throat.

 

               Finally bullying the net back into its rolled up form, Victor left Otabeck to console the still grousing Yurio and made his way to Yuri. He paused as he reached the other man’s side, holding out a hand and helping Yuri to his feet, pressing their wet bodies together just long enough to drop a kiss to Yuri’s salty forehead before pulling back and leading them back to the shore, across the sand, and to their abandoned towel.

 

               Chris tosses them each a dry towel as they walk up, Victor and Yuri separating so they can dry themselves off enough that they won’t completely saturate the towel they will be sitting on.

 

               “Guang Hong and Leo went to pick up some lunch for everyone.” Phichit had moved his towel out from under the shade of the umbrella, his tanned skin soaking up the rays of the sun in a way that kind of made Victor envious. He didn’t have to look to know his skin was turning pink with the beginnings of the sunburn he was desperately trying to avoid.

 

               “I packed some snacks we can eat while we wait for them to get back. And water. It’s easy to get dehydrated out here.” Tossing the damp towel off to the side, Yuri plopped down and pulled out a bag of dried fruit and some water bottles “Victor, we need to put some more lotion on you again. You’re starting to look red.”

 

               Victor was more than happy to comply, quickly placing himself so that he was sitting between Yuri’s legs, back facing the other man as Yuri began to gently towel off any remaining droplets from off his back so the lotion would be able to soak in properly.

 

               It felt so natural, letting Yuri do this for him. Letting Yuri run his fingers over Victor’s skin from his shoulders down to the small of his back. He bit his lip when the tips of Yuri’s fingers drifted just below the waistband of his swim shorts and then slid back up again as though it had been nothing more than an accident.

 

               Victor was starting to understand that when Yuri did these things it was not an accident at all.

 

               It was interesting, still being able to see these new sides of his boyfriend. Watching as Yuri had been all fire and spirit while playing, taunting Yurio in English and Japanese, smirking every time he got a rise out of the other boy. Cheering for his teammates and slapping Chris on the back after a particularly athletic save. Exchanging high fives with Sara after she had set him up for the perfect spike that had ended up with Leo crashing into Seung-Gil as they both read the wrong angle on the ball.

 

               Leaping on Victor’s back and letting him spin them both around after Victor had managed to serve an ace.

 

               Then there was the softer side of Yuri. The side that packed snacks and water bottles. The side that had remembered to bring sun lotion in anticipation of needing it for Victor’s pale skin. Some of that Victor now knew stemmed from Yuri’s anxiety. Some, but not all. Some was from Yuri’s genuine desire to be there for the people he cared about.

 

               Of course, Victor’s new favorite was Yuri’s rapidly emerging sensual side. The lingering touches Victor was now able to read just right. The way he would cast his eyes downward and bite his bottom lip in a way that made the blood rush out of Victor’s head in favor of relocating in other sections of his body. How, after the door to their dorm had closed behind them the night before, Yuri had kissed him like it was their last night on Earth.

 

               How Victor could have died happily if the world really had ended right then and there because he’d finally gotten everything he ever wanted and had found out it was _better_ than he expected.

 

               “There you go.” Yuri rested his chin on Victor’s shoulder and wrapped his arms around Victor’s waist, pressing his bare chest against Victor’s back. “You should get your front.”

 

               “Can’t you do it for me? I’m so tired, Yuri… I can’t feel my arms or my legs.”

 

               “It seems like you are supporting yourself just fine.” Yuri chucked in his ear.

 

               Victor went boneless.

 

               “Oh, no! It would appear as though I don’t have any strength left!” There was a soft exhalation of breath as Victor fell back, knocking them both over so that Yuri was on his back with Victor on top of him. “Whatever shall we do?”

 

               “Ah! Victor! You’re crushing me.” Victor was pretty sure Yuri wouldn’t be able to laugh the way he was if Victor was really crushing him so he figured he was safe enough.

 

               “Phichit! Look at that.” Victor glanced over to see Chris tossing Phichit his phone as the Thai man sat up and began snapping photos. “Tag me in the good ones.”

 

               “Of course. I’ll tag you, too, Victor.”

 

               “Thank you.” Yuri was struggling with a little more purpose now, so Victor rolled off of him.

 

               He kept rolling until he was on his stomach, supporting his torso with his elbows and forearms. Yuri rolled over onto his side, propping his head up in the palm of his hand, elbow sinking into the beach towel and a soft smile on his lips. He must have grabbed his glasses when Victor hadn’t been paying attention because they were back on his face now, sliding down from their normal position due to the dampness of Yuri’s skin from a combination of seawater and sweat.

 

               If it weren’t for the knowledge of Phichit and Chris talking and laughing behind them, or where Otabeck and Yurio were arguing about something undoubtedly stupid in Russian somewhere off to their left, Victor would have closed the gap between them. Would have run his fingers through Yuri’s wet hair. Removed the glasses from his face. Would have kissed him until the sun exploded and the world ended.

 

               He was on the verge of doing it anyway when Guang Hong and Leo returned with their lunches.

 

               Victor had a feeling this beach was going to become very special to him over the course of the next month.

 

~

 

               “[I can’t believe you didn’t tell me. I thought we told each other everything!]” Phichit had waited until Victor and Chris had decided to head out to find some ice cream before coming in out of the sun and cornering Yuri.

 

               “[It happened literally twelve hours ago. Was I supposed to text you as soon as we were done?]” Yuri pushed himself up into a sitting position and drew his knees up against his chest. He tried to feign disinterest, but, as usual, it was impossible to stop the flush from creeping across his face.

 

               “[I mean, you could have waited five minutes for curtesy’s sake. Victor does seem like a cuddler, but, yes, a text would be nice. Or a call. Or smoke signals. I don’t know. Get creative.]” Phichit was clearly enjoying this far too much in Yuri’s opinion. “[This is like a big deal.]”

 

               “[It’s really not. It’s not like I was a virgin or anything.]”

 

               “[But you were a Victor virgin!]”

 

               “[What…?]” Yuri furrowed his brows as he tried to figure out exactly what his friend was trying to say. Sometimes he founds Phichit's logic hard to follow. “[That’s… That’s not a thing.]”

 

               “[Yes, it is. You’d never had sex with Victor before, now you have. Ergo, Victor virginity lost. Congratulations!]”

 

               “[I’m still pretty sure that’s not a thing.]” Yuri changed tact. “[You didn’t text me either. I leave you alone in a restaurant with Chris to have that conversation you keep putting off, and I don’t hear from you again until I run into you at breakfast? This sounds like a classic case of the pot calling the kettle black to me.]”

 

               “[I’ve never understood that phrasing. What if the pot was actually red or something. Then that wouldn’t make sense at all.]” Yuri poked his friend in the side, right between his ribs where he knew Phichit was the most ticklish. “[Ah! Fine, fine. I may have skimped on my best friend duties myself. I admit it.]”

 

               “[Now that we have that out of the way. You know my news. Tell me yours. Are you really stepping back and doing the friends to dating thing?]”

 

               Phichit shrugs. “[For now. It struck us that we may have gone a bit out of order with the whole thing. There was also some discovery that we were on different pages when it came to what we meant to each other. He thought we already were boyfriends. I thought we were friends with benefits. We agreed to meet at the lowest common denominator.]”

 

               “[Which is?]”

 

               “[Friends that want to have benefits?]” Yuri raised an eyebrow and gave his friend a look that showed exactly what he thought of that description and Phichit sighed heavily. “[I didn’t have sex with him again if that’s what you’re asking. We both felt it was best to take hormones out of the equation for the time being. Go on a few official dates. Make sure that we were actually doing the friendship part of being partners right before we threw the physical back into the mix.]”

 

               Yuri nodded. “[Not a bad plan. I give you about a week before you’re sleeping together again.]”

 

               “[Do you really have such little faith in me?]” Yuri knew Phichit was trying to make him feel guilty. Luckily, he knew better.

 

               “[Neither of you are teenagers and you both have obvious chemistry. I also know for a fact that you enjoy sex and I get the feeling he does as well. Don’t abstain just to make a stupid point to no one but yourself.]” Yuri placed a hand on Phichit’s shoulder. “[You know I love you, Phichit. Trust me when I say that you are going to find Chris is very sincere when it comes to his desire to court you and that before all this exploded you looked happy when you were with him.]”

 

               “[You know, I feel like this situation is usually flipped the other way around.]” Phichit reached up and squeezed Yuri’s hand with his own. “[Victor has been good for you. If I’m happy then you have ascended to some other plane of bliss I didn’t even know existed.]”

 

               “[Yes, well, he put up with a lot from me to even get here so I figure it was about time to start enjoying the ride.]” That wasn’t the whole truth and Yuri knew Phichit saw right through him, but he didn’t push.

 

               The real truth was that Yuri had never felt better in his entire life. That there was some part of him that just came to life whenever Victor was around. Some part that knew whenever Victor entered the room and turned towards him like Yuri was a flower and Victor was the sun.

 

               Deep down, Yuri knew it wasn’t going to last. That the darkness would fall over him sooner or later, but for now it was nice to pretend. To hope that this could be the start a new Yuri Katsuki. That he could be the kind of person that was worthy of Victor’s love.

 

               The crash was coming, he could feel it in his bones.

 

               But for now, he was going to allow himself to continue to be lifted by the high.

 

~

 

               Victor spent the week feeling as though he were floating on air.

 

               He was waking up every morning with Yuri in his arms exactly where he belonged. They had been on several double dates with Chris and Phichit that had gone beyond well. They had spent every day on the beach and Victor had only suffered a mild sunburn even for all their time there.

 

               Sometimes he felt like this was a dream. There was always a brief moment before he would open his eyes in the morning where he would panic and worry that once he did wake up he would find himself in his bedroom back in Russia. That he would look down and see the warmth in his grasp was a poodle and not his boyfriend.

 

               Even worse than the thought that the year was over and he could ever end up back where he had been before, was the thought that none of this had happened at all. That it had all been a dream fueled by the emptiness and loneliness of before.

 

               That the reason why Yuri seemed too good to be true was because that’s exactly what he was. A figment of Victor’s overactive imagination.

 

               Then he would open his eyes and see the scuffed wall of the dorm, pinprick holes decorating the wall where posters of students past had been hung. His body would be lying on a pair of dorm beds pushed and tied together. Yuri’s breath would be ghosting across his collar bones or Victor would find his face nuzzled into the nape of Yuri’s neck, nose full of the scent of his shampoo.

 

               How could he go back to what he had before when he now knew what he was missing?

 

               Victor had no idea what he was going to do at the end of the year. How he was going to manage to sort out what to do with his life so that he could keep Yuri in it. Should he move to Japan? His father had business contacts there. Victor knew that much. It wouldn’t be terribly difficult to convince his father to give him a position at one of their Japanese firms. Moving to Japan could work.

 

               Would Yuri want him to move to Japan?

 

               Victor watched as Phichit and Yuri splashed in the ankle deep water of a tide pool. They were speaking Japanese and Chris was perched on a rock with Phichit's phone taking photos as the two friends would pick up a shell or interesting pieces of driftwood to hold up for the camera.

 

               Of course, Yuri would want him to move to Japan. Yuri loved him. Victor loved Yuri. They loved each other. That was what people who loved each other did. They moved mountains to stay by each other’s sides.

 

               Now Victor just had to figure out the perfect way to ask.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> I'd like to give a quick shoutout to my best friend who puts up with my 3 am text messages when I'm high on coffee and lack of sleep. And who is totally cool with me stealing our conversations for witty dialogue. She's the best!
> 
> And we're over the midway point now. I've updated some of the tags and soon I'll be able to update with a total chapter count.
> 
> If anyone wants to know, I based the suite described in this chapter off a suite at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Google is my best friend.
> 
> As always, thank you so much for your kudos and comments!

               June – Spain

 

               The weekend of their scheduled getaway to Madrid comes up and Victor finds himself sharing a bench on the train with Yuri. It gives him no end of satisfaction that Yuri sitting next to him on their various adventures is never in question any longer. It is now the expected thing. Like the sun rising in the east or Yurio bitching about life in general. The Earth revolves around the sun and Yuri sits next to Victor on public transports. Simple facts of life.

 

               “Stop squirming. I’m going to get it all over your face if you don’t sit still.”

 

               Victor groaned, but did as he was told, wincing as the cold gel smeared on Yuri’s fingertips brushed against the sensitive skin along the bridge of his nose and his cheeks. The sunburn he’d been flirting with all week had finally materialized across his nose and cheeks where he apparently had not applied a thick enough coat of sunblock and Yuri was applying aloe gel to the burnt skin for him since there weren’t any mirrors on the train and Victor hadn’t wanted to risk getting any gel on his phone by trying to use the front facing camera.

 

               Well, that, and Victor just really wanted to find any and every reason to have Yuri touch him. Even with the sticky layer of aloe between them, Yuri’s touch was electric and addictive. Victor was certain there would never come a time when he felt like he’d had enough.

 

               “What would I do without you?” It was a valid question in Victor’s mind. Life without Yuri wasn’t something he could wrap his mind around any longer. It was like the other man had always been there, a steady presence at his side for his whole life. It always startled him when he looked at the calendar and was reminded that a little over six months ago he hadn’t even known who Yuri was. Hadn’t even known he existed.

 

               Had been living his own life without knowing his soulmate was waiting for him over 7,000 kilometers away with an entire continent between them.

 

               “Right now, you’d probably look like a lobster. You’re lucky it was just your face.” Yuri admonished softly as he finished his ministrations and began wiping his fingers off with a tissue. “You need to be more careful with your complexion or you’ll end up like Yurio before you know it.”

 

               “Fuck off. The bottle said it was good for four hours. Not my fault it fucking lied.” Yurio was slumped on the bench across the way, shifting and twitching in obvious discomfort. He was wearing a loose purple vest that bared his red and peeling shoulders and he was sitting in such a way that his back wasn’t touching any part of the seat behind him.

 

               “It also said that it was water resistant, not water proof. You should have reapplied every time you got out of the water. Here. Use this. It’ll help.” Yuri tossed the tube of aloe at the glaring Russian punk, but Yurio caught it with a grumble of thanks and set about applying the substance to his own burns. Finished wiping off his hands, Yuri tucked the used tissue into a small plastic bag in his duffle and turned back to Victor. “Does that feel better?”

 

               “Yes, thank you.” It really did. The gel stung going on, but the longer it sat on his heated skin, the cooling aspect took deeper effect and Victor could feel the relief washing over his frazzled nerve endings.

 

               “Good. The clerk at the pharmacy said it had a numbing agent worked into the formula so I thought it might help ease some of the worst of the discomfort until this heals more.” Yuri smiled and sat back. “I think we should hold off on more beach days once we get back until it’s healed completely, though. Just to be on the safe side.”

 

               “Agreed.” Victor didn’t want to agree. He liked the beach. Like the gulls and the smell of the ocean. The warmth of the sand between his toes and the fact that Yuri was shirtless more often than not when they were there. So, if only for that last reason alone, Victor did not want to agree.

 

               He did, however, also not want to end up like Yurio who was now hissing in pain as he brushed off Otabeck’s attempts to help him as he tried to rub the aloe on his own back up under his vest.

 

               “I think he’s going to have freckles under there once he’s done peeling.” Phichit and Chris were on the bench behind them and the Thai man was turned around and sitting on his knees, resting his arms over the shared back of their two benches. He reached out one perfectly tanned finger and made circling motions with it a few centimeters away from the center of Victor’s face. “I’ll bet they’ll look absolutely adorable once all that nasty dead skin has fallen off.”

 

               Victor shuddered. “I do not want to think about my face peeling right now, thank you very much.”

 

               “Don’t worry. I’m sure Yuri will still love you even when half your face is falling off.” Chris joked and Victor frowned in response.

 

               He reached up and prodded his sore and sticky nose.

 

               “It doesn’t look _that_ bad, does it?”

 

               “You look fine. He’s just giving you a hard time.” Yuri sounded like he was only half paying attention. Victor looked over to find he had drug his travel-sized box of tissues out of his bag and was offering them to Otabeck, presumably for when Yurio was ready to wipe the excess gel from his hands.

 

               “Thank you.” Otabeck accepted the proffered box before leveling an impressive glare at where Yurio was still trying to contort himself in a way that would allow for him to reach the place between his shoulder blades without pulling the burnt and sensitive skin on his shoulders too taught. “Yura. We all know you can do it by yourself. That still doesn’t mean you should. Quit being stubborn and let me help. Please.”

 

               Yurio grunted and cursed in Russian, but took the tissue Otabeck offered him and tossed the other man the aloe. The blonde turned so that his back was facing his friend and crossed his arms over his chest with a huff.

 

               “I miss Russia. The sun never tried to kill me there.” Wrapping his arms around Yuri’s neck and leaning against him. Victor pouted. “Yuri… Let’s go back to Russia. It’s never too hot to cuddle in Russia.”

 

               “You don’t really want to go back to Russia right now, Victor. You just aren’t used to an entire week of temperature in the high twenties Celsius yet.” Yuri pat him on the head, but didn’t push him away. It was cooler on the train. Victor could probably get away with a solid ten to fifteen minutes of snuggling his boyfriend before Yuri got too hot and pushed him off. “You wouldn’t want to miss out on the rest of the trip in favor of going back to Russia, would you?”

 

               “I would go anywhere so long as it’s with you.” Victor whispered into Yuri’s ear, resting his cheek on Yuri’s shoulder as he felt the other man shiver against him.

 

               He didn’t have to look up to know Yuri was blushing. He could see it when he closed his eyes. Yuri’s blush splashing across the bridge of his nose from one cheek to the other. A mirror image of the sunburn adorning his own face. Victor could be with Yuri for fifty years and he was sure that Yuri would never stop blushing at Victor’s antics and that the sight of it would never fail to make the blood pound in his ears.

 

               “I don’t understand it.” Victor turn his head to the other side at Phichit’s words so he could see them again. “How do they manage to be so completely adorable all the time?”

 

               “It’s a mystery.” Chris was leaning with his back against the train wall, head propped up in his hand. Too bad Phichit’s full attention was on the conversation he was now having with Yuri in Japanese over Victor’s head. It might have made him feel better to see the pure adoration reflected in Chris’ gaze.

 

               “ _No mystery. It’s love._ ”

 

               A knowing look passed between himself and his friend before Victor gave up on trying to follow any conversation. Burying his head in the crook of Yuri’s neck, he felt his eyes drift shut as one of Yuri’s hands threaded through Victor’s hair. The sensation was calming and it was almost as though he felt his body growing heavier with each passing second.

 

               It wasn’t long at all from that point before Victor drifted off to sleep, content in the knowledge that Yuri would be there when he woke.

 

~

 

               The hotel they would be staying at was a short walk from where the train let them off in downtown Madrid. Victor was still s bit sleepy from his impromptu nap on the train, but he perked up a bit as they went. The enthusiasm of the rest of the group catching as they craned their necks every which way taking in the sights.

 

               Isabella led them confidently through the crowded streets. It was late on a Friday afternoon and the city was crowded with people making their way around town after work. Ahead of them, Victor saw Chris grabbed Phichit’s hand just in time to stop the Thai man from running into a teenager speeding past them on a bike. He exchanged a subdued smile with Yuri as they both noticed neither of their friends let go even once the danger had passed.

 

               Once they reached the lobby, Isabella and JJ left them camped out in a circle of couches in an alcove off to the left of the open space while they checked everyone in at the front desk.

 

               Victor let his eyes wander around the lobby. It was a nice place. Marbled floors and tasteful gold trim on the walls. The ceiling was high and two large chandeliers took up a prominent place over head, the crystals casting ribbons of wavy light over the black, gold, and white swirling patterns on the floor. The couches were plush and velvet. Bellhops in uniforms hustled silently through the space, pushing trolleys and carrying bags while guests dressed in clothing that cost a small fortune, designer heels clicking along and the quiet susurrus of Armani suits emanating from the businessmen who strode around with the air of purpose dripping off them.

 

               With his father owning one of the larger investment firms in Russia, Victor wasn’t exactly as stranger to luxury, but he felt out of place none the less. Perhaps it has something to do with the way their ragtag group was garnering sharp stares from the other patrons.

 

               He was sure they did look fairly out of place. A group of what was clearly university students from out of town in on holiday. Yurio’s sunburn and ratty shorts stood out like a beacon in a place like this and the rest of them weren’t exactly looking their best either. Sara was wearing sweats and had her long hair pulled up on the top of her head in a messy bun. The shirt Leo was wearing had a stain on the left sleeve. Guang Hong’s shoes had come untied and he apparently couldn’t be bothered to correct it. Everyone’s clothes were wrinkled in the way of students who had access to shared laundry facilities and no irons. Victor was sure he looked less that his usual well put together self as well.

 

               Yuri usually always looked slightly on the verge of messy, with his hair constantly in disarray and his glasses constantly going askew, but he looked particularly bedraggled today. There were bags under his eyes and his lips were chapped from where he had fallen into an old habit of chewing on them when deep in thought. Beneath the glow of a fresh tan, there was a sallowness to his skin tone. Yuri hadn’t been sleeping well for the past week. It was often that Victor would be pulled out of a deep sleep at one or two in the morning to find his boyfriend sitting at one of the desk, typing away at his laptop with headphones in his ears. Whenever Victor had asked, Yuri would say it was for work. With Japan being seven hours ahead of Spain, Mari would have just been starting her morning during the times Victor had found Yuri awake.

 

               Hopefully this weekend away would help take Yuri’s mind off of whatever was going on with work back home. Yuri deserved a break.

 

               “Okay!” Isabella was back and holding onto four small envelops in one hand. She smiled widely as JJ snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her close. “There are fourteen of us and four suites. How do we want to split it?”

 

               “Chris, Victor, Yuri, and I will take one of the suites!” Phichit jumped forward eagerly to grab one of the envelops from Isabella. “Thank you!”

 

               There was a bit of an argument over who was going to go where. Apparently Yurio thought JJ and Isabella didn’t deserve to have a suite to themselves when everyone else had to share. He lost eventually when a man in a dark suit and an earpiece came over and began to hover on their outskirts of their gathering, shooting them dirty looks for making a commotion.

 

               “Since this hotel is owned by Isabella’s parents, if she wants a suite for just her and JJ, then she should have it.” Yuri ended up being the voice of reason, breaking up Yurio and JJ before they could come to blows and get them all kicked out. “It’s only fair. Let’s go before we end up with nowhere to stay.”

 

               They sorted out the rest of the room assignments. Michele, Emil, Sara, and Seung-Gil would take one of the remaining suites and Yurio, Otabeck, Leo, and Guang Hong would share the other. With that settled, they made their way to the elevators, swiping their keycards in order to gain access to the top floor.

 

               The suite Victor, Yuri, Phichit, and Chris are to share is amazing.

 

               Walking through the door, there is a small room with a toilet and sink off to the left and the entrance to a small kitchenette and fully stocked wet bar to their right. Clearing the foyer, the room opens up into a combined living and dining space, massive flat screen on one wall facing a large L-shaped leather sofa and a loveseat. Straight ahead is a floor to ceiling window giving them the perfect view of the sun setting over the Madrid skyline.

 

               Off to the right of the living area is a dining set with four chairs and fresh flowers sitting in the center of the table for decoration. Behind the table there is the entry way leading to the bedroom.

 

               Phichit is the first to take off, leaving his bags by the door and bouncing off towards the bedroom. Chris is quick to follow and Yuri and Victor drag their things into the room and leave them on one end of the leather sofa.

 

               “Shit! You guys need to come see this!” Phichit yells from somewhere in the bedroom and Victor and Yuri hurry to come see what all the fuss is about.

 

               “Wow…” Victor knows his mouth is hanging open, but he doesn’t care.

 

               There are two bathrooms instead of one. They are both done in tan and black marble. The one on the left has a large shower with glass doors and a bench while the one on the left has a deep jacuzzi tub. Each have their own sink and a toilet tucked away behind a discreet door by the walk-in closet.

 

               “Okay, Victor, I’m going to need you to take Yuri somewhere. Anywhere. You can get lost forever for all I care. I’m going to need a bare minimum of twelve hours to break in both the tub and the shower properly.” Victor did not have any doubt in his mind that Chris had just made a promise he had every intention of keeping if the way he was looking at Phichit was any indication.

 

               “That’s not fair. I thought you two were taking it slow. Being friends before adding the benefits.” To be honest, Victor had his own thoughts of exactly what kind of plans he could put together to use both bathrooms to their full potential. In fact, twelve hours might not even be enough. “By that token, you should be the one to take Phichit and get lost.”

 

               “No one is taking anyone anywhere.” There was a waver in Yuri’s voice that belied his serious tone. Just enough hidden there for Victor to know that his mind was not the only one taking a brief sojourn into the gutter. “We’re supposed to meet the others downstairs for dinner in ten minutes anyway.”

 

               “Take Victor, go to dinner, and tell them Chris and I weren’t feeling well.” Phichit squawked as Yuri reached out and slapped him on the back of the head. “Ouch! I mean, I deserved it, but still. Ouch.”

 

               “We are going to dinner. Come on.”

 

~

 

               The next day they go shopping.

 

               It’s not one of Yuri’s favorite things to do, but anything is better than putting up with Chris’ constant subtle and not so subtle attempts at getting Yuri and Victor to leave the room. Besides, if anyone gets first dibs on either the tub or the shower it should be Victor and him in Yuri’s opinion since Chris and Phichit had won the coin toss and ended up with the bedroom the night before. Even with lying blankets over the leather before they had gone to sleep, Yuri still woke up with the small of his back uncomfortably stuck to the clingy surface due to Victor predictable tossing and turning dislodging his carefully constructed blanket nest.

 

               “The hotel is amazing Isabella.” Emil says as they meet out front of the building before heading off towards an outdoor market that had caught their attention when looking for something to do the night before. “Your parents have impeccable taste.”

 

               “It’s all my mother’s doing, really. She doesn’t let my father anywhere near her hotels.” Isabella is all smiles this morning. Despite her slightly annoying tendency to cling to JJ and thrust him and his accomplishments into the middle of every conversation, Victor has to admit she is a very nice person. “She is very proud of them.”

 

               “I can’t believe I didn’t know your mother owned hotels.” Sara says.

 

               “I didn’t even know you were Spanish until last week.” Victor admits.

 

               “You wouldn’t be the first person.” If Isabella is put out by Victor’s question she doesn’t show it, but Yuri can’t help roll his eyes of his boyfriend’s lack of attention span again. “I’m half Spanish, actually. My father is Chinese, hence my last name being Yang. He was a fashion designer in Hong Kong and my mother was a model. They met in Milan at Fashion Week one year and he followed her back here to Madrid on a whim. Nine months later, I turned up. When she realized she didn’t want to go back to modeling, she convinced my father to let her use some of the money she’d put away to buy a dying brand of luxury hotels. You would think a fashion designer would be great to redecorate and renovate a hotel chain into a modern luxury brand. You would be wrong. My father has a thing for the phrase ‘All that glitters must be gold’ with emphasis on the ‘glitter’ part.”

 

               “I can see how that might get him banned from having any further input.” Yuri said. He had already known this about the other girl, of course, but it appeared Victor wasn’t the only one surprised by her unorthodox story if the looks on the other’s faces were anything to go by.

 

               Isabella laughs. “You don’t even know the half of it. I think my mother might still have the pictures.”

 

               They split up as soon as they reach the outdoor market. JJ and Isabella are supposed to meet her parents a few blocks away so they can meet her boyfriend. Guang Hong, Leo, and Seung-Gil get distracted by some colorful tents displaying different photography prints for sale. Sara, Michele, and Emil head off on their own, Emil drug along for the ride as Sara is wanting to hunt down some new sun dresses now that they are somewhere with actual summer weather and Michele is wanting to make sure that she doesn’t get the chance to ask any other male for their opinion on her choices.  Once again, no one seems to know where Yurio and Otabeck have gone as they slipped away from the edges of the group while everyone else was sorting out their plans and contemplating various locations to meet up at later.

 

               Yuri yawns and sags against Victor as he watches Chris and Phichit argue about whether they should go check out where some vendors are selling food or if they want to going shopping first. Luckily this time Victor hadn’t woken up when Yuri’s phone had buzzed him awake at two am. Yuri had snuck out of the suite and to the business center on the third floor to attend a quick meeting with Mari through Skype as they went over the latest updates on their rapidly developing plan to finally take the step and expand their resorts outside of Japan. The meeting had gone on longer than he anticipated, so he was running on about four hours of sleep.

 

               “Are you okay? We can go back to the hotel and take a nap.” Victor looked worried again and Yuri tried to ignore the burning in his eyes as he gave Victor what he hoped was a bright smile and a peck on the cheek.

 

               “No, I’m fine.” Even if Yuri wasn’t fine, he wouldn’t have let Victor come back with him. Since Victor would never have accepted Yuri going back on his own, that left him no other option but to stay. “Did we decide on where we’re going first?”

 

               “We decided on food.”

 

               Yuri allows himself to be pulled along by Victor. It’s hot in the sun, so they find a table in the shade and Yuri pushes his chair away from Victor enough so that the other man’s body heat isn’t radiating onto him so intensely.

 

               “Mari being a slave driver again?” Phichit takes a bite from the bowl of stew he’d purchased. The memory bank full of random facts at the back of Yuri’s mind supplies the name _cocido madrile_ _ño_. Chickpeas, meat, and vegetables. Yuri looks down at the bland pastry he’d chosen. Maybe he should have paid better attention to what he was ordering.

 

               “Yes. It’s tourist season for our resorts. The inn in Hasetsu is quiet this time of year since there aren’t a lot of people that want to spend time soaking in a hot spring when it’s already so hot outside, so she can really focus on our other properties.” Yuri sighs and bites into his pastry. It’s fine. Buttery and soft on the inside with just to right amount of crisp on the outside. His stomach still has decided if it even feels like food. “Usually I would be on holiday right now and able to be there to lend more of a hand.”

 

               “You aren’t regretting applying for this trip, are you?” Victor sounds distressed and Yuri pinches himself on the thigh in another desperate attempt to perk up. He does _not_ want Victor worrying about him right now.

 

               “Not at all.” He places his hand over where Victor’s is resting on the top of the table and squeezes, getting that unfairly adorable heart-shaped smile from his boyfriend in response. There. Crisis averted. For now, at least. “Barring any emergency, she’s giving me the next two days off. I’ll have plenty of time to recharge before we head back to Barcelona.”

 

               “Is there anything I can do to help?” Phichit is quick to put in the offer, but Yuri shakes his head.

 

               “Not right now. If anything comes up, you will be the first to know.” He bites his lip as Phichit gives him the look that Yuri understands to mean he has not been believed. “Fine, I’ll email Mari when we get back to the hotel. If she thinks of something she can send it to you.”

 

               “I’m going to have to watch you send that email, you know.” Yuri does know. Phichit is not Victor who can be put off with a smile, a kiss, or, in truly drastic situations, a hand down the back of his pants. He’ll just have to find a way to get a text out to Mari before they get back to warn her about Phichit’s incoming request and to beg her to put him off. “Hey, the sooner I can start getting into the groove, the better. There’s less than six months left on the countdown until graduation.”

 

               The bottom drops out of Yuri’s stomach. In less than six months they will be getting their degrees. Yuri will take up his proper place at his sister’s side. The trip will be over. Real life will begin.

 

               Victor will be gone.

 

               No. He can’t think about that right now. Later, maybe, but not right now. Not sitting here in the shade in the middle of Madrid with Victor rubbing circles on the back of Yuri’s hand with the pad of his thumb. Not with Phichit and Chris hanging off each other and flirting shamelessly on the other side of the table.

 

               Keep moving. Don’t sit still. Don’t let the thought catch him. If he lets it, he will be struck by it like a bolt of lightning and the world will come crashing down. The dam Yuri has been building slowly but surely will crack and shatter. The flood will come pouring through every nook and cranny and Yuri will have an attack.

 

               Not right now. He can’t right now. He has too much to do. Too much in front of him to enjoy.

 

               It felt like he’d been agonizing within his mind for hours, but it must have only taken a few seconds to wrest back control from his traitorous emotions. Not enough for his cheerful façade to slip and allow anyone to notice the inner turmoil that had been brought to the surface with Phichit’s innocent observation.

 

               They finish their meal and get up to go peruse the tents and shops. Phichit and Chris are walking arm in arm in front of him. Yuri wonders if they ever think about the future. If Phichit wakes up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat when he remembers that Chris is going to be back in Switzerland in less than half a year. If Chris ever catches sight of Phichit from across the room and has his heart stop in his chest when he remembers that very soon there will come a time when he can look around the room as intently as humanly possible, but there will be no chance that Phichit will be there.

 

               If they do, how do they cope?

 

               He supposes he could just ask Phichit. His friend was always open and ready to lend an ear and some excellent advice in the past, but Yuri can’t bring himself to do it. Can’t bring himself to be the person to remind Phichit of the bitter pill reality is waiting to shove down their throats. On the off chance that Phichit hasn’t thought such dark things, Yuri isn’t going to be the one who brings it to the forefront of his mind. That wouldn’t be fair.

 

               So, he smiles when he is supposed to. He lets Victor drag him from shop to shop with all the enthusiasm of an untrained puppy. He uses Phichit’s phone to take pictures as his friend models different outfits when asked. There are tendrils of the joy he feels whenever he is around Victor stirring in his chest and he encourages them to grow and push away the weeds that had popped up in his moment of exhausted weakness.

 

               He catching the glint of something golden out of the corner of his eye as they turn a corner. Victor is distracted by something Chris is saying and Phichit is busy uploading pictures to Instagram. Yuri takes a half step away from them to get a better look.

 

               It’s a jewelry store. The glint that has caught Yuri’s eye is a display of rings in the window. Golden and shiny and catching the light. Yuri’s entire body goes numb.

 

               It’s tempting. It is oh, so tempting. To think about a distant someday when he might wear such a ring. Where he could wear _Victor’s_ ring. And Victor would wear his in return. He hadn’t even known that was something he wanted until he’d seen it flash across his conscious.

 

               “Yuri!”

 

               Forcing himself to turn his body back towards Victor, he smiles and this one feels more real. As though his mood has been bolstered by nothing more concrete than a silly fantasy.

 

               He slides into Victor’s open arms as though he belongs there, easing back into the conversation as though he has never left it. They mill about for another minute or two before Phichit proclaims that it is time to go back for seconds at the food trucks.

 

               Yuri glances over his shoulder at the jewelry store one last time as they walk away.

 

               Maybe, in another life, he would have had the courage to go in there. Maybe, in another life, he would have had the courage to just ask Victor to stay.

 

               But this isn’t another life. This is his life. And in his life, happiness always came with an expiration date.

 

~

 

               Victor finds himself in a lounge area on the second floor of the hotel. There are couches here and a fancy television. Complimentary snacks and drinks on a counter at the back of the room and a fancy silver cart that holds an expresso machine and a coffee maker.

 

               Some of the group are playing a card game at a table in the center of the room. Chris and Phichit are curled up together on a loveseat in front of the television with some kind of Spanish soap opera they are obviously ignoring playing on the screen. Yuri is tucked into a chair off to the side with his laptop in his lap.

 

               Victor walks across the room, pausing before he pulls even with Yuri’s chair. There’s something familiar in the reflection of the screen on Yuri’s glasses. Something about the inverted text he can see blurred there that stirs his memory.

 

               “Is that Russian?”

 

               Yuri jumps like he’s been shocked. Victor can see the window he’s been staring at intently for the past fifteen minutes disappear before he can crane his neck over the top of the screen and get a better look.

 

               “V-Victor!” Yuri turns red and closes his laptop with a sharp click. “You scared me.”

 

               “Sorry, love.” Victor places a quick kiss on the crown of Yuri’s head in apology and takes up a perch on the arm of the chair. “Were you trying to read something in Russian?”

 

               “Ah… No?” Yuri is a bad liar. Victor is sure he thinks he’s great, but it is always too easy to tell when he’s trying to hide something. Yuri knows it, too. All Victor has to do is raise an eyebrow and wait and it doesn’t take Yuri long at all to crack. “Yes. I was hoping to surprise you by learning a little Russian.”

 

               “If that’s the case, you might not want to jump straight into Cyrillic lettering. They confuse me sometimes and Russian is my first language.” Yuri shrugs and shuffles in his seat. “Do you want some help?”

 

               “How am I supposed to surprise you if you’re the one that’s teaching me?” Ah, there’s Yuri’s normal tone. It was taking less and less time for Yuri to relax after becoming flustered. Victor liked to think he had something to do with that. “I thought you were playing cards.”

 

               “I was. There’s only so many times I can take Yurio and JJ overtly trying to papercut each other to death over my head before I lose interest.” Yuri stows the computer safely in its padded bag and places it gently on the floor. There isn’t much room in the chair, but Yuri gets up and lets Victor slip into the empty space before settling down in his lap. “If you aren’t going to tell me what you are trying to learn to say in Russian, can you at least tell me why you want to learn in the first place?”

 

               “I might have thought it could be nice to have small conversations with you in Russian from time to time. Make it feel a bit more like home.” Yuri looked down at him with his enchanting brown eyes and Victor melted. Literally melted. “I mean, I know you have Yurio and Otabeck you can talk to if you really wanted to, but I thought that it might be nice to talk to me, too, sometimes.”

 

               “Oh, Yuri… You have no idea how happy that would make me.” Victor couldn’t resist kissing Yuri. He kept it more chaste than he would have liked, but he knew how Yuri felt about kissing in front of their friends. “I’m sorry for ruining your surprise.”

 

               “Don’t worry about it.”

 

               “I have an idea.” He felt Yuri tense in his lap and he couldn’t help but chuckle. Okay, so maybe Victor saying those words often times proceeded throwing himself headfirst into some kind of ill-conceived, half-baked idea that Yuri would quite often have to bail him out of. “Why don’t I help you learn Russian and you can help me learn Japanese. It’ll be a fair trade.”

 

               Yuri went silent as he thought about it.

 

               “That might be one of your better ideas.” Yuri was getting excited. It didn’t happen often and it tended to happen in waves, but when Yuri got excited about something it was like a light turned on underneath his skin and he began to shine. “Okay, we can start when we get back to Barcelona?”

 

               “We can start anytime you like.”


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> The general consensus from the last chapter was that Yuri needed a nap. I agree. So, let's have a nice cuddly nap and then some more open communication between Victor and Yuri to get us back on the right track?
> 
> Thanks to everyone who has left a kudos or a comment. You always brighten my day!

               July – Italy

 

               They arrive in Rome in the middle of an early July heat wave.

 

               Standing in a group in front of Leonardo da Vinci International Airport, Victor feels like the soles of his shoes are melting into the pavement. No one is saying much and, as much as Victor wants to, he can’t even bring himself to drape his frame over Yuri’s like he usually would. If he were to hazard a guess, he would say it was roughly one thousand degrees right now.

 

               It’s stifling inside the vans. Sarah and Isabella have their hair piled onto the top of their heads in messy buns in a futile attempt to get some cool air across the back of their necks. Victor watches as Yurio eyes them for a minute before doing the same. Victor knows his own hair must look terrible, slick and greasy and clinging to his forehead and the nape of his neck. Usually looking so disheveled in public would bother him.

 

               Right now, he can’t bring himself to care.

 

               “Phichit…” Yuri sounds terrible. He’d come down with some kind of congestion the day before and it was hitting him full on today. Yuri had his glasses tucked away in a hard case in his messenger bag, choosing to go blind and rely on Victor to make sure they get to where they need to be. His eyes are glassy and drift in and out of focus. He clears his throat and the scratchiness Victor can hear there makes him wince. “Can you get the cloth bag out of my duffle? I think it’s slid too far back under the seat. I can’t seem to reach it.”

 

               Phichit and Chris are behind them and Phichit’s dark head of hair disappears for a moment and he ducks down and pulls Yuri’s duffle out from where it has, indeed, slid under the bench seat and ended up in their space.

 

               “Here.” Phichit tries to hand over the requested item and Yuri waves him off, pointing to Victor who accepts it in his stead. “Are you sure you’re going to be alright? There has to be a clinic or something we can take you to when we get there.”

 

               “I’m fine. Just a summer cold. It’s not the first time I’ve had one.” His breathing sounds more like a wheeze than a true inhalation. Victor reaches out with his spare hand to push back Yuri’s sweaty bangs. He can’t tell if the heat he is feeling radiating off the other man’s skin is from their environment or fever. “I have a headband and a bottle of anti-congestion pills. Can you find them for me, Vitya? Please?”

 

               Yuri must be further gone than he thought. This is the first time he’s called Victor by his diminutive in public. The low thrum of worry that had settled in his stomach since yesterday twists and intensifies.

 

               It’s easy to find the blue headband Yuri asks for and Victor watches as Yuri takes it and quickly uses it to keep his bangs pulled up and off his face. The medication his boyfriend has requested is a little more difficult to manage since there are three pill bottles in the cloth bag and they are all written in Japanese.

 

               “Phichit, help?” Victor holds out the three bottles towards the man behind him, realizing that Yuri will be no help at all without his glasses.

 

               “It’s the blue one… I think?” Phichit squints and bites his lip. “I’m not great at written Japanese.”

 

               “It’s the blue one. The dosage is for two pills.” Yuri confirms. He tugs the surgical mask he’s been wearing down under his chin and holds out his hand patiently while Victor separates two white pills from the rest and places them in the palm of his boyfriend’s hand.

 

               “Do you need water?” Victor asks. Yuri looks at the pills in his hands and nods.

 

               “I’ll bet there’s a bottle of water in his duffle.” Chris pulls Yuri’s bag from off Phichit’s lap into his own and rummages around for minute before finding an unopened bottle somewhere towards the bottom. “Ah, and here it is. Prepared Yuri saves the day again.”

 

               “Thanks, Chris.” Victor takes the bottle and twists off the cap, breaking the seal.

 

               Yuri takes the medicine, takes another deep swig from the bottle, hands it back, and then slumps against the wall of the van. Victor wishes they were at the dorm already instead of crowded together inside these old vans. He wants to be able to run cool water over a washcloth and press it against Yuri’s forehead to help get him even the tiniest bit of relief.

 

               When they reach their new dorm, Victor is blindsided by the fact that he is not going to be assigned to the same room as Yuri again.

 

               There is no time to think about it or feel sorry for himself. Right now, the most important thing is to get Yuri to his own room where the other boy can take a cool shower and change. While he is doing that, Victor is determined to find a clinic they can visit if his fever is not doing significantly better once that has been accomplished.

 

               Yuri is rooming with Emil this time and the Czech man is eager to help Victor get Yuri’s things into the room and settled while Yuri is taking his shower. So, Victor shoves his own bags into the corner by the door instead of seeking out his own room in favor of setting up a space for Yuri to lie down once he’s done.

 

               It doesn’t take long before there is a commotion from out in the hallway.

 

               Victor doesn’t want to go look. He’s pretty sure it’s Yurio again. It’s _always_ Yurio. It’s always Yurio and Victor does not have the patience to talk the other Russian down from the ledge this time around. Not with the way he was so worried about Yuri.

 

               There are two voices arguing now, one male and one female. Emil does not share any of Victor’s hesitancy and he opens their door and steps outside. With the barrier between the room and the outside world gone, Victor is suddenly made aware of the fact that the screaming is not in Russian, like he’d thought, but in something that sounds a lot like Italian.

 

               Curiosity piqued, he decided to follow Emil and see what is going on.

 

               It’s Sara and Michele, screaming at each other in their native tongue.

 

               Sara looks like she is on fire. Her unique eyes flashing and the color high on her cheeks. Tendrils of dark hair are escaping from the knot at the top of her head and her hands slice through the air as she punctuates whatever it is that she is saying.

 

               On the opposite end, Michele is in much the same state. The tendons in his neck are strained and taught. His hands are balled into fists and clenched against his sides. There is a tension in his frame that suggests he wants to take a step forward and is having difficulty restraining himself from doing so.

 

               Victor can’t even begin to understand what they could be arguing about. He couldn’t say he knew either of them well, and, even though Michele could be described as grouchy most days of the week, he had never seen either of them truly angry before.

 

               No one seems to know what to do. Victor and Emil aren’t the only ones who are standing frozen in the hall. Maybe if they were having their screaming match in English it would be easier for someone to step up and play the peacemaker, but the only two people on the trip who spoke Italian were both currently engaged in utilizing that knowledge in order to fight with each other in public.

 

               Before anyone can move to stop it, Sara raises a hand and smacks her brother square across the face. She spits out one last venomous statement and strides off without even glancing back at where her brother is standing frozen in shock in the middle of the hall, a hand pressed to the red mark on his cheek.

 

               It takes a moment for Michele to gather his wits together again, but as soon as he seems to realize he is standing out in the open with all his classmates staring at him, he growls low in his throat and stomps back to a room down the hall, yanking the door open and slamming it closed behind him with a force that shakes the walls three doors down.

 

               The noise jolts everyone present into action and they all scatter. Leaving Emil and Victor standing alone in the hall.

 

               “Ouch… I feel bad for whoever has to room with him tonight. He’s going to be a nightmare.” Emil makes a nervous sound that is something between a laugh and a choke.

 

               “That would be me.”

 

               “Oh, shit, Victor….”

 

~

 

               Yuri feels more like himself after his shower. The pills he took in the van are starting to take effect and he is able to breathe without feeling like there is a commercial truck parked on top of his lungs. With the thin layer of sweat gone from his skin he feels human again.

 

               He dries off quickly, and, despite the heat outdoors, slips on thick sweatpants and a lightweight sweater. Finally, he pulls his glasses out of their case and places them back on his face where they belong.

 

               There is still exhaustion there, buzzing just below the surface and Yuri knows not to take his slight recovery as a sign that he is out of the woods just yet. Victor had suggested a nap before shoving Yuri into the bathroom and commanding that he take a cold shower. His boyfriend was probably right. A nap would be perfect. He had been pushing himself too hard lately and this was just his body’s way of forcing him to slow down before it was too late.

 

               Even though the only thing he wanted right then was to find Victor and curl up in his arms, he wasn’t expecting to see him struggling with getting the fitted sheet they had bought in Barcelona to stretch over the two mattresses on the beds he’d pushed together.

 

               Yuri blinked once. Twice. Removed his glasses and cleaned the lenses against the bottom of his soft sweater. Rubbed his eyes with his free hand. Put his glasses back on.

 

               Victor was still there.

 

               “What are you doing?” Maybe it was the exhaustion. Maybe it was the last remnants of his fever. Whatever it was, Yuri’s brain was far too sluggish in that moment to come up with any logical conclusion as to why Victor was here with the beds tied together like in Spain when Yuri was supposed to be sharing a room with Emil. Speaking of… “Where’s Emil?”

 

               “Long story.” Victor growled in frustration and threw the sheets down on the beds. “I know you aren’t feeling well, but can you help me with this?”

 

               “Only if you tell me what that long story is while I help.”

 

               “Deal.”

 

               Bullying his aching body into obeying, Yuri moves to grab one end of the sheet.

 

               “Not that I’m not thrilled about this, but why are you here?” Yuri asks as they shake the sheet out between them and spread it so there are no more tangled edges.

 

               “Michele and Sara were fighting in the hallway. No one knows about what since they were speaking Italian, but whatever it was, Sara slapped him before walking away.” Victor grunted as he stretched across the bedframes in order to reach the far corner of the mattress against the wall. “He slammed the door to our room so hard I’m surprised you didn’t feel it all the way in the shower. When Emil found out I was supposed to be sharing with him this month he offered to switch since they’re friends and he’s apparently used to Michele throwing fits.”

 

               “Oh…” Yuri frowned as he tucked in his corners. That definitely didn’t sound good.

 

               “You’re okay with this, right? I know we should have asked you first, but we didn’t know how long you would be and Emil wanted to check on Michele quickly before he had too much time to stew.” Yuri looked up to find an expression of concern looking back at him. “If you want we can always switch back after a few days…”

 

               “Do you want to switch back?” Finishing his end of the bed, Yuri took a step back and waited for Victor to finish his own. “Do you want to stay here the whole month?”

 

               Yuri was fairly certain Victor wouldn’t be here at all if this wasn’t what he wanted. Victor never did strike his as the kind of person that would stick around if he didn’t want to be somewhere. His boyfriend was clingy, yes, but he was only clingy where Yuri was concerned. Almost as though by Yuri’s side was the only place he could ever fathom wanting to be.

 

               But the whispers at the back of Yuri’s mind wanted to be sure.

 

               “Do I want to spend another month of living together with you?” Victor asked with a tone that implied it was a stupid question. All things considered, it probably was, but Yuri had to _know_ … “Yes, I do. I’d share a dorm with you in every country on the map if I could.”

 

               Sometimes Victor would say things like that and Yuri just wanted to laugh. How could someone say something so cheesy, so obvious, and still be so deadly serious about it? If anyone else had tried to use that line, Yuri would have known without a doubt they didn’t mean it. That they were just saying it to lighten up the mood.

 

               Victor, though… Victor meant it. All Yuri had to do was look into those clear, blue eyes, and know that he never would say anything like that to Yuri without meaning every single syllable.

 

               “You’re ridiculous.” Yuri shook his head softly, but he smiled at his boyfriend in order to let Victor know he was just teasing. “I don’t want you to switch back. This arrangement work for me.”

 

               “Good. I’m glad.” Victor cross the room in three steps with those ridiculously long legs of his and Yuri allowed himself to be drawn into Victor’s firm embrace with no resistance. “Now, let’s get you into bed.”

 

               “You aren’t even going to buy me dinner first?” Yuri pulled back in the embrace so he could see Victor’s face. He was rewarded for his efforts by the over the top look of hurt Victor was currently affecting. “You sleep with a guy a handful of times and suddenly all the romance is gone.”

 

               “Yuri…” Victor did that thing where he drew out the ‘u’ in Yuri’s name before poking out his bottom lip in a pout. Those two things combined that always made Yuri’s toes curl and a shiver to run up his spine no matter how hard he tried to hold it back. “If you felt better you know I would take you to the nicest place in town. Wine and dine you like you deserve…”

 

               “Vitya, I was kidding.” Yuri reached up to thread his fingers through Victor’s soft, silver hair. The taller man hummed low in his throat at the soothing contact and Yuri let himself be pulled in closer. “Right now, the only thing I want is a long nap. With you. I definitely want you there.”

 

               “That can be arranged.” Victor murmured the words directly into Yuri’s ear and he wished his body didn’t ache so badly from his fever. There were several things he wanted to do in bed with Victor and very few of them actually had anything to do with sleeping, but right now he wasn’t sure he would be able to keep his eyes open if he wanted to. It was like all the energy he had been gifted during his cold shower was draining out of him bit by bit and leaving nothing but an empty shell behind. “Come on. You need a nap first, and then, if you aren’t markedly better by the time we wake up, we’re going to find a doctor for you to see.”

 

               “That’s not necessary…” Yuri’s protests were weak and he allowed himself to be bullied into the bed and under the covers. “I’m sure I’ll be better by dinner time. Just a summer cold.”

 

               “We’ll see.” Victor tucked him in gently and Yuri watched through eyelids that felt as though they had tiny weights hanging off each lash as Victor dug some shorts and a shirt out of his suitcase to change into. “I’m going to take a quick shower. By the time I get back, I want you to be asleep.”

 

               “Yes, sir.”

 

               Before heading to the bathroom, Victor paused by the bed, leaning over to kiss Yuri on the forehead, removing Yuri’s glasses from his face and placing them carefully on one of the nearby desks.

 

               Yuri watches him go, waiting until the door to the bathroom closes behind him before letting out a deep sigh.

 

               He snuggled deeper under the blankets, still chilled despite the lukewarm air in the room. The dorms had central air, but the building was old and the ventilation system was weak. Yuri was sure he would wake up in an hour or so sweating through the sheets, but right now he wanted the comfort of the weight of the blankets on top of him. At least until Victor was done in the shower and could come take their place.

 

               Yuri wiggled his shoulders around as his tried to get comfortable. There was a deep, unsettling itch in his lungs and it was hard to find a position to rest in where the congestion in his nose wasn’t blocking his ability to breathe.

 

               He was going to have to find a way to make this up to Victor. To apologize for being a burden. To thank him for taking care of him. Hopefully when he woke up he felt good enough to put Victor off trying to find him a doctor and then things would go back to normal.

 

               The muted sounds of the shower lulled him to sleep.

 

               When he woke up, hours later, his head was clearer and he could breathe again.

 

               And Victor was right there beside him, exactly where he promised he’d be.

 

~

 

               “Are you sure you don’t want me to find a clinic?” Victor knew he was hovering and probably being beyond annoying, but he couldn’t help it.

 

               “I’m fine. I haven’t run a temperature in the last twelve hours and I can breathe about half the time now.” Yuri smiled at him from across the table in the cafeteria. “If the fever comes back, we can find a doctor. Deal?”

 

               Victor ran his eyes over his boyfriend. He did have to admit that Yuri looked a lot better after their long nap. His skin was still pale, but the blush of fever was gone from his cheeks and the wheeze in his chest was significantly better. There was still a deep cough that would force its way out of his lungs every once and a while, but even that was more infrequent and less intense. There was a raspy edge to his voice, but his sentences were clear and coherent.

 

               “Deal.” Victor agreed and leant back into his own seat. “But we shouldn’t stay out too long. It’s too hot to do much exploring and if you push it then you are going to relapse and then I _am_ taking you to see a doctor. Kicking and screaming if I have to.”

 

               “Fair enough.” Yuri’s laugher trailed off into a brief coughing fit and he held up a hand to keep Victor back as his first instinct had been to lean back over the table again. “Okay, okay. We eat a quick dinner and then right back to bed. I promise.”

 

               “What do you want?” Victor asked, getting to his feet in preparation for going to get their food. Yuri looked as though he wanted to follow before Victor reached out across the table and pushed gently against his shoulder. As he’d expected, Yuri flopped back down even though he hadn’t pressed hard at all. “You are going to stay right here. I am going to get our food. What would you like me to get for you?”

 

               There was a huff of air from the other end of the table and Yuri crossed his arms over his chest with a pout. The other man could be so stubborn when it came to his independence. To the point where it was almost irritating. Sometimes Victor wished Yuri would just let him take care of him. That his first instinct would one day be to let Victor in instead of shutting him out.

 

               Getting mad at Yuri when he wasn’t feeling well wasn’t going to help though, so Victor counted to ten in his head as Yuri grumbled, but grabbed at a nearby menu and perused his options without trying to get to his feet again.

 

               “Soup.” Yuri sniffled and shoved the menu away. “That creamy gnocchi soup looks good.”

 

               “Stay here. I’ll get it for you.”

 

               Yuri grunted in acknowledgement and Victor left, fairly certain he wouldn’t be followed. As much as he loved every single stubborn cell of Yuri, he still found himself wishing that, every once in a while, the Japanese man would just relax and let Victor take care of him the way he deserved.

 

               Hurrying over to one of the counters, Victor almost ran head first into Phichit and Chris before he noticed they were even there.

 

               “Hey, Victor. We were hoping you two were up and about.” Chris held out a hand to grab him before he ended up on the floor and there was a brief moment where all three of them danced around each other before getting their balance back. “How’s Yuri?”

 

               “Better.” Victor ran a hand through his hair and absentmindedly adjusted his shirt. He’d been in such a hurry to get out of the dorm and get some food into Yuri before the other man lost his appetite again he hadn’t really spent as much time on his appearance as he normally would. He’d honestly not expected to run into anyone he knew since, for the most part, no one ate in the cafeterias these days. “He’s hungry for the first time in two days, so that has to mean something, right?’

 

               “Is that him over there?” Victor turned his head to where Phichit was pointed at where Yuri now had his head bent over his cellphone, typing out something onto the screen and not paying the slightest bit of attention to his surroundings.

 

               “Yes. I’m going to take that phone and hide it.” This time when Victor ran his hand through his bangs, it was out of frustration. “He might not have gotten so sick if he wasn’t up all hours of the night and day on his computer. I thought the end of classes were going to mean we could all relax.”

 

               “Ah, you are getting to see true workaholic Yuri for the first time, I see.” Phichit rolled his eyes. “Let me talk to him. I’m sure he’s just compensating for not being with Mari during the busy season. It’s a thing he does. You should have seen him when we went to Thailand together last summer, and that was only for a week.”

 

               “Thanks, Phichit.” Victor watched as Phichit went up on his toes and gave Chris a kiss on the cheek before skipping off to join Yuri at his table. “I wish Yuri would tell me when he’s feeling stressed. There has to be something I can do to help him.”

 

               “He will, give him time. You’ve only been together for a few months. I’m pretty sure you are both still in that stage where you are putting your better foot forward and hiding all those little negative things.” Chris turned and motioned for them to join the short queue at the counter. “Can you say you’ve really told him the whole truth about all your bad habits? Or are you hiding them in the hopes that the subject just never comes up and he never finds out that you like to cut your toenails at the kitchen table?”

 

               “First of all, that is absolutely disgusting and I do not do that. Ew.” Victor made a face that Chris laughed at. “Secondly…. Well, okay, you have a point. I suppose the honeymoon phase is still in full effect. That doesn’t mean I like it that he just let it get that far without asking me for help.”

 

               “He didn’t ask his best friend of over two years for help either, and I know the both of you have been asking.” Chris pointed out. “I don’t think this is a ‘you’ thing. I wouldn’t let it get to you too much. Let Phichit talk to him and then you can talk to him again when he’s back to feeling one hundred percent. Problem solved.”

 

               “Problem solved.” Victor echoed his friends words and then turned to the cashier in front of them as they had come to the front of the line.

 

               He watched Chris order food for himself and Phichit and when his turn came, Victor did the same, but his mind was a million kilometers away. As much as he hated to admit it, Chris had a point. What did he really know about Yuri, anyway? Superficial things, mostly.

 

               He knew Yuri had family in Japan. He’d even met that family. He knew Yuri and his sister were business partners. He knew they lived in an inn in Hasetsu. He even knew that Yuri was going to university for the sole purpose of being able to step into his role as a full partner so that his parents could take another step into full retirement.

 

               What he didn’t know was how Yuri really felt about that. If this was something Yuri really wanted to do with his life or if it was something he had just fallen into and kept up with out of a sense of duty or love for his family. All those nights that he’d woken up at two am to find Yuri hunched over the glare of a computer screen he hadn’t thought to ask if Yuri really wanted to be doing that at all.

 

               Superficial details. Yuri’s favorite color is blue. His favorite food is katsudon. He loved to skate.

 

               Deeper details. Why did he like blue? Had it always been his favorite color? Was it just his mother’s katsudon that was his favorite, or was there somewhere else he liked to eat the dish? When he quit skating, did it hurt? Did it feel like something was ripped out of his chest like it had felt when Victor had done the same all those years ago?

 

               Victor didn’t have the answer to any of those questions. Hadn’t thought to ask.

 

               Did Yuri even really want him to know all those things?

 

               He hadn’t even noticed Yuri was wearing himself out until it was too late, for god’s sake. What kind of boyfriend did that?

 

               That ended now, Victor thought to himself as he made idle conversation with Chris while they waited for their meals to be ready. There would be no more waiting for Yuri to come to him. No more letting Yuri hide from him when things were rough.

 

               If he loved Yuri, now was the time to show it.

 

~

 

               “I thought Phichit and Chris were supposed to meet us here?”

 

               It was a few days later and Yuri was completely back to normal, all lingering traces of his illness gone after a few days of rest and self-medication. The heat wave had broken as well, which meant Victor was free to take Yuri on a date to a restaurant he’d found through extensive Googling. It was expensive, private, and had a terrace that looked out over the lighted façade of the Coliseum. The perfect place to have a heart to heart conversation.

 

               “Hm? Oh, I just said that to get you out of the room. They never had any intention of joining us tonight. I’m not entirely sure what they are doing, but I do know I’m pretty sure I don’t want all the details.” Victor had felt a bit bad about lying to Yuri, but he’d been concerned if the other man knew it would just be the two of them, he would be more likely to come up with some kind of excuse to put Victor off and spend more time working. “You aren’t mad at me, are you?”

 

               He was more or less confident Yuri wouldn’t be mad with him, but there was always a hint of insecurity where Yuri was concerned. Enough so that Victor still got nervous when trying to surprise him. Usually he was nervous in a good way. Tonight, he was nervous in a way that was indescribable. Neither good nor bad, but somewhere in between.

 

               “I’m not mad.” If Victor hadn’t been convinced Yuri’s smiles could outshine the sun itself, he would have been right then. He felt all the tension he’d been holding rush out of him so fast it made him dizzy. “I’m sorry that I’ve been distant the past week or so. We’re breaking ground on a new resort in Sapporo and Mari is about ready to pull her hair out, so that means I’m about ready to pull mine out in return.”

 

               “Are you excited about that?”

 

               Yuri hummed under his breath and reached for his glass of water, taking a shallow sip before looking Victor in the eye.

 

               “As excited as I can be with Mari emailing and texting me at all hours.” Yuri tapped his fingers against the table. “It’ll be good for our brand, that’s for sure. I’ll feel better about it once everything has been completed.”

 

               “I’m sure everything will go fine. Neither you, nor your sister seem like the kind of people to let things get too far out of hand.” That much was true. From what little he knew of Mari, he understood her to be a no-nonsense kind of person and Yuri’s attention to details would surely catch any tiny things that escaped his sister’s attention. “Do you want any help? I am supposed to be good at marketing for new ventures. I mean, my GPA says I should be good at it. I’m not actually sure how well I’d be in practice…”

 

               “Thanks for the offer, but we’ve agreed to bring Phichit in on the project.” Yuri adjusted his glasses and took another sip of water. “It’s going to be his job full time as soon as the new year is here so we figured we might as well give him some on the job training. It’s hard with both of us here, rather than there, but we’re confident we can give the team enough support to make it work. Worst case scenario, we go to Japan for a long weekend.”

 

               “I didn’t realize… You never said you were in the middle of such a large project.”

 

               “I didn’t want to trouble you.” Yuri shrugged as though that should have been obvious. Maybe to him it was. To Victor it was just another thing he hadn’t known about his boyfriend. Another thing Yuri hadn’t thought to tell him.

 

               “It wouldn’t have troubled me. I would have wanted to know. I _do_ want to know.” The frustration he’d been keeping inside was boiling back up to the surface. Victor forced himself to tamp it down. The last thing he wanted was to snap at Yuri or push him away in return just because he’d inadvertently had his feelings hurt. “I’m not dating you because I think it’s a fun way to pass the time. I want to be a part of your life. That means I want to know if there is something bothering you, or not bothering you, or whatever it is that you are doing or feeling.”

 

               “You do?”

 

               The surprise in Yuri’s voice cut Victor down to the bone in just two syllables. How could Yuri still doubt him even after everything?

 

               “Yes, I do. Of course, I do!” Even he winced as his tone. He hadn’t meant for that to come out so frantic and needy. “I’m starting to get the idea that we might be on two different pages again.”

 

               “What?” Yuri tilted his head in confusion.

 

               “I want to know about your life, Yuri. The good parts, the bad parts. If you are stressed out about something at work, I want to know about it _before_ you work yourself into a fever.” Victor reached across the table and grabbed the hand Yuri had resting there. “Even if you don’t want me to help, I still want to be there for you as a sounding board at the very least. The one thing I can’t do is be there for you if I don’t even know you’re hurting.”

 

               “I’m not hurting.” Yuri flipped his hand over under Victor’s palm and wrapped his fingers around it. “But I have hurt you, it seems.”

 

               “That’s not what…”

 

               “I know that’s not what you meant, but that’s what I did. I’m sorry.”

 

               Damn it. Yuri had to stop turning things around on him like that.

 

               “Don’t be sorry. Let’s just… Let’s just be better.” Victor squeezed Yuri’s hand tightly. Trying to convey everything he was thinking and feeling through that one gesture. Trying to let Yuri know that even if they weren’t side by side physically, Victor would always be there for him. “You let me in, and I’ll let you in.”

 

               There was a silence as Yuri contemplated his words. Every second it went on Victor felt like he was in agony. Before Yuri could say anything, they were interrupted by the waiter coming to take their food order. It took a moment to get their order across as the waiter’s English wasn’t great and Yuri and Victor’s Italian was non-existent, but they managed.

 

               Once that distraction was out of the way, awkward silence descended again. There was nothing Victor could do, but wait it out. The ball was in Yuri’s court now. The decision had to be his. What they had wasn’t going to work if Victor was the only one that was willing to go all in.

 

               He desperately tried not to think about what he would do if Yuri wasn’t willing to meet him where he was.

 

               “Fair warning, but I’m going to tell you I’m sorry again. I know you hate that, but I have to say it. It’s a compulsion.”

 

               “After you say it, are you going to give me an honest response to my request?”

 

               Yuri reached out and took back Victor’s hand from where they had separated in order to play charades with the waiter. Victor’s heart started to pound in his chest.

 

               “I’m sorry. I should have known better than to try and hide anything from you. It’s a knee jerk reaction. That doesn’t mean it’s right, it just means it’s… Hard. Hard for me to let people in, even people I really care about.” Yuri ran his thumb over the back of Victor’s hand. “Sometimes I forget I’m not fighting alone anymore.”

 

               “You never have to fight alone again.” Victor confirmed, raising Yuri’s hand to his lips and pressing a kiss between his knuckles. “I promise you that I am going to be there for you. Unfortunately, that means I’m also going to be there even when you don’t want me to. I’m abrasive like that, or so I’ve been told.”

 

               Yuri chuckled and shook his head. “I wouldn’t say you are abrasive. Not really. You do mean well. I can’t promise I’m going to be thrilled every single time, but I can promise I want you to be there. This… This wasn’t a cry for help, not really, but I’m glad you were there anyway.”

 

               “Always. I’m am always going to be here.”

 

               For the first time in his life, Victor actually meant it.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese [Bracketed]
> 
> We're rounding the bend and heading down the backend of the hill now. I would say probably about 13 chapters left to go. I'll know for sure once I do this last little bit of outlining I've been putting off.
> 
> I've also decided to starting posting little insights into my writing process on my tumblr. I don't have anything posted up there yet, but I'll start putting little blog posts up here and there starting tomorrow most likely.
> 
> https://www.tumblr.com/blog/gallopingmonroe-blog
> 
> A massive thank you to everyone who is following this story so far. I can't believe my silly, little idea has been so well received! It just makes me want to write even FASTER. As though that were humanly possible. Lol

 

 

               July – Italy

 

               “Are they still fighting?”

 

               “According to Yurio, he saw Sara walk into the common area yesterday afternoon, see that Michele was already there, and ran out like she’d seen a ghost. I would say that means they are still fighting.”

 

               “Does anyone know what they’re fighting about?’

 

               “Emil might, but if he does, he’s not saying.”

 

               Victor, Yuri, Phichit, and Chris were sprawled out on a several large blankets they’d laid out in the middle of a park Sara had put them onto the first week they’d been there. It wasn’t the same as the beach back in Barcelona, but there was more shade here and less of a chance for Victor to fall victim to another sunburn, so it was perfect for those lazy days when they didn’t feel like dragging themselves from tourist spot to tourist spot. It also was far enough from campus that there wasn't a terribly high chance of anyone from their class stumbling upon them, but not so far that they had to take public transports to reach it. They were all pretty much over public transportation in any of its forms by this point.

 

               Grabbing for where his bottle of soda had rolled off the edge of the blanket and into the grass, Victor tried to keep an ear on the conversation. It was always more difficult to focus when he had Yuri tucked against him, body pressed close in the all the right spots.

 

               It was just the right kind of torture.

 

               Especially since he now knew Yuri knew _exactly_ what he was doing when he would lay against him like that. That Yuri understand exactly how Victor felt when that amazing ass of his was pressed up against his hips.

 

               Yuri was going to be the death of him.

 

               But, oh, what a sweet death it would be.

 

               “What do you think, Victor?”

 

               He crashed back into the conversation with a start. He wasn’t sure exactly what he was supposed to be thinking about, since he didn’t remember what they had been talking about in the first place.

 

               “What do I think?” He tried to stall for time. Shifted backwards in order to put a few extra centimeters between himself and Yuri’s warm body. Hopefully a little distance would help jumpstart his failing brain cells. It hadn't seemed to work yet, but maybe the fiftieth time was the charm.

 

               Yuri took pity on him.

 

               Which was only fair since Yuri was the cause of his distraction as usual.

 

               “What do you think Michele and Sara are fighting about?” Yuri pushed himself up onto his elbows and twisted around so that he could look down at Victor’s face. That didn’t help Victor’s distraction any as that just meant that there was a golden halo of light around his head now. “Phichit thinks they are fighting over a guy.”

 

               “Not just any guy. Emil.” Yuri rolled away at Phichit's statement and Victor was able to grab at the fraying ends of his concentration in order to patch them together long enough to focus on the conversation at hand. “I think they are fighting over Emil. It makes plenty of sense when you think about it.”

 

               “I think we shouldn’t be thinking about it.” Victor sat up. Maybe he could think easier if he were more upright. “It’s not really any of our business.”

 

               “It’s not, but there’s no harm in speculation, is there?” Chris followed Victor’s motion and soon they were all sitting upright. “It’s not like we’re spreading rumors or something like that.”

 

               “I don’t think it’s about Emil.” Yuri was fiddling with the wax paper his sandwich had been wrapped in. “Not every drama in the world has to be about a guy.”

 

               “No, but all the best ones are.” Chris nudges Phichit in the side and they both share a soft look between each other. “Fine, if it’s not about a guy, then what else is there?”

 

               “Could be something family related.” Victor posits. “They are twins, and the fight seems to have begun as soon as we got here, in their home country. I don’t remember there being any tension between them when we were in Spain.”

 

               “You weren’t paying attention to anyone who wasn’t Yuri when we were in Spain.” Phichit teases and Victor shrugs. It was true. “I have to agree, though. I don’t remember them being particularly prickly towards each other back there, or anywhere else for that matter… I still think it’s about a guy, though. Or a girl. It could be about a girl.”

 

               “That’s one vote boy/girl troubles, and one vote family feud.” Apparently, Chris was keeping score. Though why he would want to, Victor doesn’t have the faintest idea. “My guess is money troubles. Michele spent a lot of money on something when we were in Madrid. I heard them talking about it when we were all at a bar one time. Sara didn't seem thrilled about whatever it was. Yuri, what’s your guess?”

 

               “I don’t have one.” Yuri shrugs and pops a cracker into his mouth, chewing and swallowing while the others stare at him. “What? I don’t. You guys took all the good ideas and I don't think it's any of our business in any case.”

 

               “Then you can be the deciding vote! Which idea do you think has the most merit?” Phichit lunges across the blankets to grab one of the crackers from out of Yuri’s package. “Love, family, or money?”

 

               “Um… Family problems I guess.”

 

               “You would side with Victor. I thought we were friends, Yuri.” Phichit doges the cracker Yuri throws at him and it hits Chris in the face instead.

 

               “Oh! Sorry, Chris. I wasn’t aiming for you!” There is a moment where Yuri is about to scramble forward, to do what, Victor isn’t quite sure, but Victor grabs him by the waist and pulls him back, causing the smaller man to tumble into his lap. “What…? Victor, what are you doing?”

 

               “Stopping you from killing your best friend. You’ll regret it in the morning.”

 

               “I wasn’t going to kill him. I was just going to rough him up a little.” Yuri stopped struggling and sank back into Victor’s arms with a soft sigh. “He’s not a bad friend, all things considered. I’d hate to lose him forever.”

 

               “Wow, Yuri. Tell me how you really feel.”

 

               This time when Yuri lunged, Victor let him go.

 

               A playful scuffle broke out, scattering the remains of their lunches and ending up with all four boys in a pile on the grass.

 

               They wrestled around for about five minutes, Victor trying to help Yuri and ending up getting in the way more often than not. Before long, though, they were all lying on their backs staring up at the brilliant blue sky above them.

 

               Victor fell deep into his own thoughts as no one made a move to restart the conversation.

 

               Yuri had been a completely different person since recovering from his brief illness and the talk they’d had on their date immediately thereafter. Well, maybe not a _completely_ different person, but definitely closer to the open and easygoing Yuri Victor had gotten a glimpse of from time to time before. Victor loved every single side Yuri showed him, even his insecure one, but this one had to be his favorite.

 

               Now Victor didn’t have to push or even ask for Yuri to start talking to him about whatever thing was bothering him and Victor did the same, though with school out of session and Victor not having a job, his list of complaints was much smaller. It didn’t seem to matter to Yuri, though. He was always willing to listen and offer the appropriate comment or well-timed hug. And Victor did the same, even if half of the business management things they discussed went right over his head.

 

               There were still moments when it felt like Yuri was holding back on him, not wanting to talk about something that was weighing heavy on his mind, but those moments were coming fewer and further apart. Victor was even getting better at knowing the right thing to say in those moments to bring Yuri back into the present and out of those gloomy thoughts, even if sometimes it felt like he was only getting half answers from time to time. Those half answers were still better than nothing and Yuri would always apologize in his own time and tell Victor exactly what he’d been thinking once he’d had that opportunity to sort through whatever was bothering him. It was a compromise Victor had been a bit uncomfortable with until Yuri had explained to him that he still needed some amount of alone time to get everything together or else he was going to crack under the strain of constantly worrying about blurting something out in the wrong way.

 

               Sometimes it still felt like baby steps. Sometimes Victor still wondered if there would ever come a day when Yuri would finally remove whatever thin barrier remained between the two of them and give into the openness Victor so desperately wished for them.

 

               Well, baby steps were better than nothing and they were both trying. Victor had to stay strong. Stay hopeful.

 

               They loved each other and Yuri was trying. For now, that was more than enough.

 

~

 

               “ **I don’t understand why they want us to go to Venice.** ” Yurio was a grumpy and irritable as ever as they stretched out on the floor of the dance studio Sara had helped them find. Yurio might not currently be enrolled into any official dance classes, but he wasn’t letting that fact stop him from practicing. Victor had to admit that he admired the younger boy’s dedication. “ **I didn’t think Guang Hong liked Otabeck and I very much.** ”

 

               “ **Everyone likes Otabeck.** ” Victor pointed out. It was true. Despite never speaking much to anyone who was not Yurio, Otabeck was actually quite popular with the others. “ **Why wouldn’t they want to invite you guys?** ”

 

               “ **I know. I was implying they don’t like me. I thought you were supposed to be smart**.”

 

               “I am smart.” Victor switched to English as he noticed Yuri giving them confused glances through the mirror as he went through his own series of stretches at the barre. “And they do like you. You don’t notice it because you’re always so busy yelling at anyone and everyone, but they do like you.”

 

               “You’re an acquired taste.”  Yuri says blandly from his corner of the room. Yuri keeps one hand on the barre and uses the other to grab his left leg and pull it up into a standing split, involuntarily reminding Victor of exactly how flexible he is, as though Victor could ever forget. “Some took longer to acquire it than others, but they all got there eventually. Guang Hong invited you to come along with us for more than just ensuring Otabeck comes along.”

 

               “They want him to DJ at a club there. Otabeck told me so.” Yurio ignores Yuri’s comments and stretches his arms out in front of him until his spine arches and his chest presses against the floor. Victor tries to do the same, but the burn in his calf stops him before he can quite get his chest to floor level. “I can’t say no to going because then he’ll think he needs to stay here with me, but he wants to do it. I want him to do it. He’s good and he needs to keep expanding his international brand.”

 

               “Why don’t you want to go?” The question was phrased in such a way as to keep up the front of casual inquiry, but Victor was dying to know. Usually Yurio didn’t give a shit about whether people wanted him there or not, showing up to outings even if a formal invitation had never been extended.

 

               “Do I need a fucking reason to not want to spend six hours trapped in public transportation hell, just to spend five days with all of you idiots before spending another six hours getting back here while mostly likely sporting the hangover from hell if any of our other expeditions are anything to go by?” Yurio pulls back up out of his stretch and flops back onto his back, the force of it resonating with a dull thump through the open area. “If you need a reason, there it is.”

 

               “That’s a valid reason.” Yuri comes down out of his split, only to switch legs and go back into it. “I’m not looking forward to that part of the trip either. Venice should be fun and, if you don’t want to drink, I’m right there with you. Victor is the world’s biggest baby when he’s hungover and he is just a million times easier to deal with when I don’t have a splitting headache.”

 

               “Hey! I’m not that bad.” Victor pulls out of his own stretch to shoot Yuri a wounded look through the mirror. “Maybe I don’t want to drink either because I don’t like dealing with _you_ being hungover when I don’t feel well.”

 

               “Fair enough.” Yuri put his leg back down and raised both arms over his head arching his back and sighing as some of his vertebrae pop back into place. “You don’t have to go if you don’t want to, but it would be nice to have you there.”

 

               “You don’t have to say what you think I want to hear. You can tell me how you really feel.” Yurio’s statement was a little difficult to hear as it was said directly into the floor as Yurio has now rolled over onto his stomach, but Victor got the basic idea of what he was trying to say.

 

               “Why is it so hard to believe that’s exactly what we’re trying to do?” Victor glances over at the blonde. He’s now rolled over so that he is back on his back, staring at the ceiling with a blank look that does not suit his usually fiery green eyes. His hair is splayed around his head and obviously tangled at the ends. “We like Otabeck, yes, but we like you, too. The two of you aren’t mutually exclusive to each other. I mean, that’s how I feel. I can’t truly speak for anyone else…”

 

               “They like you.” Yuri was quick to jump in when it was clear Victor was about to put his foot in his mouth. “They don’t say it because they are too afraid you’re going to bite their heads off, but they like you. Trust me.”

 

               Yurio doesn’t say anything to that for a long time. For once, Victor recognizes the situation for what it is and stays silent as well. He’s almost too scared to move in case that would trigger Yurio in some way. Yuri doesn’t seem to notice or care about the tension in the room, returning to stretching without saying another word.

 

               “Fine. I’ll go. Are you fucking happy?”

 

               “Only if you are.” Yuri shoots back, before releasing the barre at long last. “Now that we’ve decided that, on your feet. Your forte turns need some work. They haven’t been as sharp as they usually are. The last thing I need is for Lillia to hunt me down if you come back to Russia and she feels like you’re no longer up to par.”

 

               “Oh, god, Yuri. You don’t think she’d really come to kill us, do you?” Finding out the answer to that questions was suddenly the only thing Victor was interested in.

 

               “I think we really don’t want to test her and find out the hard way.”

 

~

 

               “Is there something going on with Yurio?”

 

               It’s evening and they are back in their dorm room, packing in anticipation of leaving early the next morning to go to Venice. Yuri had been barely paying attention to Victor in favor of sorting through his clothing just to make sure he wasn’t forgetting to pack something he would miss once they got there. Due to his lack of attention, Victor’s question catches him off guard and it takes him a moment to respond.

 

               “I don’t think so. At least, not more so than usual. What makes you say that?”

 

               “He was just acting strange today. You didn’t think so?” Yuri pauses in his packing and turns around so that he can look Victor in the eye. There is concern there, concern mixed with curiosity. “I mean, the whole not wanting to go with us thing.”

 

               “He often says he doesn’t want to go with us.” That much was true. Yurio always acted like he never wanted to go along with the plans of the group, but he always ended up going in the end. Victor wouldn’t be so worried about that. So, maybe it was about… “Are you concerned because he said he didn’t want to go because nobody likes him or would want him there?”

 

               “You’re not?” For someone who liked to stick their nose in everyone’s business, Victor could be incredibly dense in Yuri’s opinion. “You aren’t worried that he thinks everyone only wants to be his friend because of Otabeck?”

 

               “Of course, I’m worried about that, but it’s nothing new. He actually seems like he’s doing better these days.” Yuri shrugged, hoping that by showing his was aware of the problem and still not too terribly concerned that it would lighten the mood some. He was wrong if the distressed expression on Victor’s face currently was any indication. Yuri tried again. “Contrary to popular belief, Yurio is self-aware enough to realize he puts people off. That doesn’t necessarily mean he wants to be alone. He’s also not stupid. He knows that his friendship with Otabeck helps make him more palatable for the others to tolerate, but that also doesn’t mean he can’t be insecure and wonder if the only reason we ever invite him along to anything is because we want his friend there and not him. Remember, he’s about a year and half out of high school. It takes a while to shake that mentality of your life being over just because you can’t fit into the right friend group.”

 

               “Oh, so he’s talked to you about that before?” Victor asked hesitantly.

 

               “Not in so many words, no, but I’ve spent enough time with him so make some solid inferences.” Yuri was quick to point out. Of course, by that token, that meant Victor should have seen the same things. Victor never did seem to spend much time being concerned about what others thought of him in Yuri’s opinion, so maybe he didn’t think about other people worrying about those kinds of things either? “I’ll bet it’s just worse this time because Guang Hong invited us to Venice as a combined birthday trip for JJ and Emil and Yurio is convinced JJ hates him.”

 

               “Wait. It’s JJ and Emil’s birthdays?”

 

               “Not anymore. Emil’s was on the eighth and JJ’s was two days ago, but the trip is kind of a delayed celebration of sorts for them.” Yuri raised an eyebrow at his boyfriend. Victor did tend to be forgetful, but he’d thought Guang Hong had mentioned the reason for their trip a few times. Of course, Victor hadn’t realized they’d been going to that art exhibition back in Barcelona for Seung-Gil’s birthday until they had gotten there and he’d seen the banners Phichit and Leo had put up. “Anyway, Yurio and JJ don’t get along. The trip is kind of in honor of JJ. Do you see where Yurio might be a little upset, now?”

 

               “Yes.” Victor places an index finger on his lip in that way he does when he is deep in thought. “Since you seem to know everything about everyone, why don’t they get along?”

 

               Yuri laughs in another attempt to dispel the tension hanging in the room. “That I don’t know. Probably because their personalities are both too similar. They’re both arrogant, loud, and the constant center of attention in their own personal universes. That’s the best I’ve been able to come up with so far.”

 

               “Sounds reasonable.” Even though Victor is trying to sound upbeat again, Yuri can tell something about the whole situation is still bothering him.

 

               If he’d noticed Victor trying this hard to dismiss a subject that had started making him uncomfortable two months ago, Yuri would have dropped it in an instant. Even two weeks ago, it would have taken some internal poking and prodding between Yuri’s anxiety and his desire to be there for his boyfriend before he would have been able to convince himself to press the subject.

 

               Now… Well, now he felt like he more than just owed Victor transparency, although he did owe Victor that. Instead of feeling obligated to push his reservations aside, Yuri _wanted_ to do it. It was a strange feeling that was taking some getting used to.

 

               “It’s okay to be worried about Yurio. I worry about him all the time.” Yuri tucked his hands into his pockets in order to stop himself from fidgeting with them nervously. “He’s not an easy one to read and he would rather chew off his own arm than ask for help. He’d rather wait until you offer it, tell you to fuck off, and then stand there expectantly until you do what you offered. That way he can say you forced it on him.”

 

               Maybe that’s why Yuri felt so close to Yurio. He might not curse and stomp his feet, but Yuri had a bad habit of pushing away the people that wanted to help with for the dumbest of reasons as well. Reasons that seemed so important in the moment, but that didn’t actually make any sense the longer he thought about them. Reasons that led him to refusing to let Phichit help him with his work until he almost killed himself from exhaustion.

 

               Reasons that had almost let Victor walk away because that would have been easier than acknowledging that sometimes Yuri made the wrong choices and ended up all the weaker for them.

 

               “I never noticed.”

 

               “Yes, you did.” Yuri wasn’t sure if Victor was being obstinate on purpose or on accident this time. “You notice all the time. And when you don’t notice, I do. When it comes to making sure Yurio doesn’t stab someone in a fit of rage, we are the best team out there.”

 

               “We are, aren’t we?” There it was. That smile that was real and not a poorly constructed replica. Yuri felt warmth in the pit of his stomach whenever Victor would smile like that. “We’re the best team for everything. With the two of us together, nothing in the world could stop us.”

 

               Yuri couldn’t help it. Couldn’t have stopped his eyes from rolling even if he’d wanted to. Couldn’t have stopped the irritated groan that pushed out of his throat. Sometimes when Victor would say those cheesy one-liners Yuri would find it endearing.

 

               Sometimes he found it exactly the way it was, painfully corny.

 

               “I went too far again, didn’t I?”

 

               “Yes, but I still love you.”

 

               “Thank god.”

 

~

 

               “Are you guys already packed?” Chris asked from his perch sitting cross-legged on top of the desk Victor was pretty sure belonged to Yuri. He wasn’t entire sure since they had both been unceremoniously shoved in a corner weeks ago and barely used since.

 

Chris and Phichit had shown up with pizza a few hours later and Victor had let them in with his everlasting thanks. He hadn’t even realized how hungry he was until the smell of tomato sauce and spicy pepperoni filled the room.

 

               “If you have to ask that question, you don’t know Yuri very well.” Phichit leant across his boyfriend’s lap to grab another slice of pizza, cheese threatening to spill into Chris’ lap before Phichit moved his paper plate underneath with a speed bordering on superhuman. “I’d be more surprised if they weren’t packed.”

 

               “I don’t understand why people make fun of me when we all know that you’re going to need a tissue, or some hand sanitizer, or a pain pill for your inevitable hangovers, and I’m going to be the only one on the trip that actually has those things.” Yuri was pouting in that adorable way of his. Bottom lip sticking out and an almost imperceptible wrinkle across the bridge of his nose. The kind of expression Victor just want to kiss off his face until Yuri couldn’t even remember why he’d been pouting in the first place. “One of these days I’m not going to be there and you’re going to be up a creek. Then what are you going to do?”

 

               “We’ll probably call you for instructions, to be honest.” It was easy for Victor to admit it. Easy for him to speak the truth. That there was now never going to be a time when Yuri wasn’t the first person Victor would think about when he needed something. When he needed anything. Even when he needed nothing at all. “Good Maps can tell us where to find the store that sells what we need, but you are going to have to tell us the brand, the price we should pay, and what to do once we have the product in our hands.”

 

               “That sounds exhausting.” Yuri took a bite of his own pizza, shifting on the bed he and Victor were sitting on so that their knees were touching.

 

               “Then I guess you’re just going to have to make sure you are always there to be prepared for when you know we won’t be. There’s just no other solution.”

 

               “ _The both of you are just so disgustingly adorable. I love it._ ” Chris was grinning in that way that let Victor know he understood exactly what was going through his head. That he knew the only thing he wanted to do right now was throw his pizza in the trash and wrap himself around his boyfriend immediately. “ _I think I’m getting contact diabetes just from being in the same room as you._ ”

 

               “ _Can you believe I ever managed to live without him?_ ” No matter how many times he asked it, Victor still couldn’t figure out the answer to that question. He was probably going to be asking it in one way or another for the rest of his life.

 

               “ _If I hadn’t been there to witness it, I would have to call bullshit on you._ ” They both laughed then, Yuri and Phichit looking at them strangely as they waited for an explanation. “ _Here’s to hoping we never have to live without them again!”_

 

               Victor reached down and grabbed the plastic cup of soda he’d placed on the floor and they offered each other an impromptu toast that can with Victor sending his friend a pointed look that said they would be having a discussion sooner or later about Phichit’s inclusion into Chris’ statement. Chris just winked in return, saying all he needed to in that one gesture.

 

               Yuri and Phichit shared their own coded look and exchanged words in Japanese, resolutely ignoring their respective boyfriends’ whines as they finished what they had to say and offered up their own half-sarcastic toasts.

 

               “Yuri, that’s not fair.” It was now Victor’s turn to pout. Yuri apparently had fewer reservations about kissing the expression off his face, as he leaned over to do just that while Phichit and Chris whopped like middle school children in the background.

 

               “Turnabout is always fair play. You should know that by now.” Yuri whispered those words against Victor’s lips and suddenly the only thing Victor wanted in the entire world was for Chris and Phichit to get the hint and get out.

 

               They did not get the hint and they did not leave. Victor bit back a groan as Yuri sat back, returning to munching happily on his pizza as though Victor’s entire existence hadn’t just crashed to a complete halt.

 

               One of these days he was going to have to have a conversation with Yuri about leaving him hanging like that.

 

               “What did you say?” Chris was now turning the full force of his seductive stare on Phichit. Face tipped downwards, green eyes peering up from underneath those insanely thick lashes, the corner of his bottom lip tucked in between his teeth.

 

               “What did _you_ say?” Phichit shot back, only the light flush that was barely visible under his tan showing he was not as unaffected by Chris’ attempts as he seemed. “You tell me and I tell you. That’s how this works, boy.”

 

               “You should listen to him. Phichit is deadly serious when he’s in a mood.” Yuri warned with a chuckle.

 

               “He must have learned that from you.” Victor loves how he can tease Yuri so freely now. How even when Yuri blushes he doesn’t cringe away. How, when he’s in the right mood, he gives just as good as he gets.

 

               “Victor did not know what he was in for when he decided to take up with you, did he, Yuri?” Phichit crumples up a napkin and tosses it in their general direction. It flutters through the air before landing in the middle of the floor. Yuri raises and eyebrow in Phichit’s general direction. “I’ll clean that up.”

 

               “Yes, you will.” Yuri begins working on eating his crust. “I take it from your earlier teasing of me, that you two _aren’t_ ready to go yet?”

 

               “We’re both kind of… Oh, what’s the best way to put it in English? _What will be, will be_?” Chris struggles for a moment before shrugging. “We take life as it comes, is what I’m trying to get at.”

 

               “This is why you will be receiving phone calls from us at two in the morning for the rest of your life, Yuri. I feel like we’ve just had this conversation.” Phichit takes his crust and slips it onto Chris’ plate before tossing his own empty one down onto the floor to join his napkin. “I’ll clean that up, too. You know how I can’t resist seeing that slightly pained look on your face.”

 

               “Rude.” Yuri frowns down at the small pile of trash on the floor before shaking his head and choosing to lean against Victor. “Victor. Beat him up for me.”

 

               “Why me?” Victor leans over just far enough to deposit his own trash on the makeshift bedside table they’d made out of boxes Yuri had scavenged from the cafeteria. “Chris would get mad at me if I beat up his boyfriend. I don’t want Chris to be mad at me. I like Chris.”

 

               “I thought you liked me.” Yuri looks up at him, brown eyes wide and glasses slipping down the bridge of his nose.

 

               “Not fair. That is not fair and you know it, Yuri.” Victor would have sounded a lot more convincing if there wasn’t a waver in his voice, but he couldn’t help it. Yuri just did something to him that he couldn’t explain. “You know I can never say no to anything when you give me that face.”

 

               There was the sound of a camera shutter from the other side of the room. Yuri frowned and turned his attention away from Victor in order to glare at where Phichit was giggling and showing the photo he’d just taken to Chris, the couple whispering about which filter was the best to use in order to post the shot to Instagram.

 

               “Never mind, Victor. I’ll beat him up on my own. It wouldn’t be as satisfying any other way.”

 

               “Come at me, Katsuki. I’d love to see you try.”

 

               In the tussle that ensued the three stacked boxes that made up their nightstand feel victim to the flailing limbs as Phichit and Yuri rolled around on the floor while Victor and Chris egged them on from the sidelines.

 

               “Phichit!”

 

               “I’ll clean that up, too!”


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> And this is the chapter where Victor finally throws his restraint out the window and gives Yuri an over the top romantic outing!
> 
> The Hotel Metropole in Venice is a legit hotel and, according to Expedia, the suite I describe in this chapter is going for like $650 American dollars a night with taxes and fees included. And that's assuming Victor booked through a discount hotel website. I don't even want to guess at the prices some of the rest of Victor's plans would cost. Quite frankly, my wallet doesn't want to know.
> 
> Hope you all enjoy!

July – Italy

 

               Everyone was exhausted by the time they reached the Hotel Metropole where they would be staying for their five day trip. Yuri in particular is feeling the strain. He’d fallen asleep on the longer portion of train ride and the rolled up shirt Victor must have gotten out for him to use as a pillow had slipped about halfway through, leaving a particularly nasty crick in his neck from where his neck had been left at an awkward angle against the window for far too long.

 

               They mill about in the hotel lobby, waiting their turn to check in. This time they have all been left to their own devices for setting up their accommodations. Some are sharing rooms to cut costs. Some choose to have their own private space. Yuri, of course, is staying with Victor, the other man having forced Yuri to let him make the reservations and payment for their suite as a gift.

 

               In retrospect, he probably should have paid a bit more attention to the room Victor was booking.

 

               It wasn’t that Yuri didn’t have money. Business was very, very good, and his family had more than enough. It was just that he was used to saving his funds, investing them wisely. Yuri was fiscally responsible, had to be in order to help balance the budgets for a widespread resort chain. It was his job to know how much things cost and what was a reasonable rate to pay for what was offered. His job to invest profits and open savings accounts just in case there was a down year.

 

               He had the feeling Victor had spent more on this hotel room than it was really worth and that he’d done it with a smile on his face.

 

               It was another suite, far smaller than the one in Barcelona, but possibly even more opulent. Instead of clean, modern lines, the décor was darker, richer, and more traditional. It was done in reds and gold, the bed large and plush, the bathroom set up with a large shower and plenty of space, tiles clean and scrubbed to shine. A floor to ceiling, glass door led out to a balcony equipped with a black, wrought iron table and chair set that overlooked the Grand Canal.

 

               It was comfortable and intimate and expensive.

 

               It was exactly what Victor would book, and Yuri was cursing his own shortsightedness for not seeing this coming.

 

               All Yuri wanted to do was rinse off with a quick shower and fall into the comfortable bed, but Victor had other plans. Plans that apparently included Chris and Phichit if the duo wanting for them in the lobby was any indication.

 

               Victor and Chris excused themselves, stating they needed to go speak with the concierge to make sure all their reservations for the evening were in order and left Yuri and Phichit standing in the middle of the room. Yuri looked at his best friend, only the find the same mix of vague horror and anticipation he knew must be etched onto his own face reflected back at him.

 

               “[Yuri, how much do you think this place costs?]” Phichit had his voice pitched low and he kept a nervous eye on their boyfriends from across the room.

 

               “[A lot.]” Yuri didn’t have to be a hotel expert to know that. You could tell just from the ornate trimmings in the lobby and the expensively dressed guests that were coming and going.

 

               “[Chris wouldn’t tell me how much my half of the room cost. He just said my trust fund covered it.]” Phichit bit his bottom lip. “[It’s a suite though. It has a view of the that little canal behind us. It’s expensive.]”

 

               “[Our room has a balcony. With a breakfast table. With a view of the Rialto Bridge. Victor wouldn’t let me put even a penny towards it. I know exactly where you’re coming from.]” As much as he knew he should have expected it, he still couldn’t quite believe Victor had gone with something so ostentatious. “[As for the cost of your room, your trust fund more than covers it. You’ve barely spent anything at all from the fund the whole time you’ve been in Japan with your scholarships. If you aren’t going to use it for its intended purpose, then Mari and I don’t have a problem releasing some of the funds to make sure you get some special treatment on this trip. You deserve it.]”

 

               “[I haven’t done anything to deserve it yet.]” There was a frown on Phichit’s face now and Yuri placed a gentle hand on his friend’s shoulder.

 

               “[Maybe not yet, but you will. Mari really liked some of the mock-ups you sent her last week. She’s taking her two favorites to the board tomorrow. This new resort is Sapporo is going to make your trust fund back one hundred times over if the projections are even half correct and you are definitely going to be helping more and more with that as things push through development.]” They both knew his reassurances weren’t just empty words, but Phichit did feel the need to be reassured from time to time. It was a feeling Yuri was intimately familiar with.

 

               Phichit looked like he was going to say something more, but there was a loud burst of laughter from Chris and Victor on the other side of the room and he seemed to think the better of saying whatever was on his mind. Even speaking in Japanese, which they knew for a fact Victor and Chris couldn’t understand, Yuri felt exposed and uncomfortable talking about private matters in front of either of them.

 

               “[They have something planned, don’t they?]” Yuri was now keeping a closer eye on the conversation going on between the concierge and their two boyfriends. “[First, the fancy hotel rooms, now a mysterious dinner invitation… Did you know that Victor told me not to make plans with anyone else for tomorrow before we left?]”

 

               “[Chris did the same.]” They shared a look between them that was suspicion bordering on unease. Yuri got the impression that Victor had been holding back so far. That romantic chalets in the Swiss mountains were more his style than quiet evenings in, and that the time might have finally come for Yuri to feel the full brunt of his romantic inclinations. “[Not that I’m complaining. It’s just… We’ve only been like dating for a month now. Are day long romantic dates in a foreign city appropriate at this stage?]”

 

               “[Phichit, with Chris courting you, I’m impressed he waited this long.]”

 

               “[You… Are not wrong.]” Phichit laughed and Yuri could see some of the tension roll of his frame. “[I’m impressed _Victor_ held off this long. I’ll bet he’s been impatiently wanting for the perfect time to sweep you off your feet.]”

 

               Yuri was about to agree. About to offer up another eye roll and a sarcastic comment. Maybe he would have even steered the conversation towards something other than speculating about whatever it was Victor and Chris could have planned for them.

 

               Phichit beat him to it, by gasping and grabbing Yuri by the shoulder, rocking him back and forth while bouncing on the balls of his feet.

 

               “[Yuri! Yuri, you don’t think… You don’t think Victor could be considering _proposing_ , do you?]”

 

               Yuri froze. Completely and totally froze.

 

               It wasn’t like an anxiety attack, not really. It was more like an out of body experience. He could hear Phichit chattering on in the background, but he might as well have been speaking Greek for the all the good it did him as Yuri couldn’t understand a word. His consciousness was aware that his mouth was hanging open, he eyes wide behind his glasses, blood completely drained from his face.

 

               He wasn’t sure how long he stood there in panicked shock before a particularly violent beat of his heart against his rib cage slammed himself back into his body and he inhaled with a loud gulp.

 

               “[N-No! No, that can’t be it.]” Yuri began to wring his hands, more as a way to keep himself grounded than anything else. “[Phichit… You don’t really think that, do you?]”

 

               “[Calm down, I was kidding… Mostly.]” For what it was worth, Phichit did look intensely apologetic for nearly giving Yuri a heart attack. This was one of those rare times when Yuri wished Phichit did censor himself when Yuri was around the way some people did when they were concerned about sending Yuri into an attack. “[What would you say if he did, though? I mean, I’m pretty sure he won’t. He’s crazy about you, but I’m pretty sure he’s not crazy in general. I can ask Chris if that would make you feel better?]”

 

               “[Yes, asking Chris would make me feel better, thank you.]”

 

               Yuri didn’t even want to think about the answer to Phichit’s other question. The more he thought about the hypothetical situation where there was a universe where an incarnation of Victor Nikiforov was waiting for him with a ring in his pocket, the more he desperately tried _not_ to think about it.

               Before he could consider that question any longer, Victor and Chris were back. Yuri allowed their exuberance wash over him and push anything other than where they were going next from his mind.

 

               It was harder than he anticipated to push down that little voice inside him that was still screaming ‘Yes!’.

 

~

 

               Victor was up early the next morning.

 

               Even though he knew Yuri would still be dead to the world, his boyfriend definitely was the opposite what could be considered a morning person, he still tiptoed around the room in the dark, gathering his discarded clothes together and getting dressed as quietly as he could.

 

               He stumbles over to the nightstand and checks the time on his phone briefly before grabbing the wallet lying beside it and making his way to the door of the suite. The hall is empty as he stepped out into it, still barefoot and ruffled. It’s worth it though as he catches sight of one of the hotel employees coming down the hall pushing a cart with the breakfast he’d ordered the night before on it.

 

               Thanking the man in poorly accented Italian, Victor gives him a generous tip and takes the cart, wheeling it into the room in silence.

 

               It’s a bit more difficult to push the cart around the furniture and the bags they’d left on the floor the night before, of which, Victor’s has now exploded and spilled half its contents in the immediate area on either side of it.  Difficult, but not impossible. Yuri really does sleep like the dead.

 

               Their breakfast now spread out neatly on the table, Victor hurries to push the empty cart back out into the hall. He’s sure someone will come for it eventually.

 

               Now all that’s left is to wake his sleeping beauty of a boyfriend and clue him into the surprise.

 

               “Yuri…” Victor sprawls out across the top of the covers, knowing full well that if he were to slip under them as he would like, there is a high chance of their breakfast going cold or being stolen by passing birds because he will be in absolutely no hurry to come out from under them again. Yuri shifts around and rolls towards where Victor’s weight has settled. He murmurs something in Japanese under his breath and buries his face in the pillow right by Victor’s hip.

 

               Victor feel a strong pull at the base of his heart. Yuri looks like an angel. The weak light from the sun rising on the horizon spills through the open balcony door and rest across Yuri’s lightly tanned face. He hair is dark against the white pillowcase and ruffled in the best way. His eyelashes lie against his cheek, dark and think and impossibly long. His lips are parted slightly and there is a tiny spot of drool in the corner.

 

               Yuri would think he looks horrible like this. If he could see himself, Victor knows the other man would try to cover Victor’s eyes and make him look away. He would stammer and blush and tell Victor not to look at him until he had enough time to get decent.

 

               Victor, on the other hand, has never seen a more beautiful sight.

 

               “Yuri…” He tries again, making his plea louder this time and shaking Yuri’s shoulder lightly in the hopes that the motion will help drag him from whatever dream he’s having. “Come on, Yuri. It’s time to wake up. Aren’t you hungry?”

 

               “Mmmm…” Yuri yawns and rolls over onto his back, brown eyes opening at long last and staring up at the ceiling. “What time is it?”

 

               “Just going on eight in the morning, love.” Victor bends over and places a chaste kiss on the tip of Yuri’s nose, causing the Japanese man to crinkle said nose and pout. “I know it’s early, but we have a long day ahead of us. I have breakfast…”

 

               “Breakfast…?” Victor can see the wheels turning inside Yuri’s head as his body and mind struggle to come to grips with being awake. There is a low rumble that emanates from Yuri’s stomach that seems to decide the matter and Yuri finally lurches into a sitting position, blinking blearily before accepting the glasses Victor has grabbed and is now trying to hand him. Able to see now, Yuri looks around the room, still clearly confused. “Where’s breakfast?”

 

               “Out on the balcony. If you don’t hurry it’s going to get cold.” Victor grabs Yuri’s hands and tugs on them. Yuri allows himself to be pulled along for a moment before he seems to realize he isn’t wearing anything underneath the sheets and he grabs his hands back.

 

               “Go. I’ll meet you out there.”

 

               Victor wants to protest. Wants to remind Yuri that there is nothing under those sheets he hasn’t already seen in intimate detail. He wants to, but he doesn’t. He needs Yuri in a good mood. He needs Yuri in a good mood, and he doesn’t need to let a perfectly good breakfast spread go to waste, which is what will happen if he lets himself continue to get distracted.

 

               So, he goes, leaving the door to the balcony open but closing the thick curtains behind him in order to give Yuri his privacy as he gets dressed.

 

               There is a cool breeze this morning and Victor leans back in his chair and closes his eyes, enjoying the feeling as it brushes across his face. Behind him he can hear the sounds of Yuri shuffling around the room. Water running in the bathroom, the rustle of clothing as he gets dressed. There is a tender feeling blooming in his chest. With his eyes closed he can almost imagine this is their life. That Victor wakes Yuri up every morning to come join him for a meal on a balcony overlooking the Grand Canal.

 

               Or, better yet, that they wake up in his flat in Russia, the sound of the gulls coming in through a window that has been left cracked open through the night to let in the summer air. Makkachin curled at their feet and Victor’s automatic coffee maker dripping in the kitchen as it sputters to life.

 

               Or, maybe, a bed in Japan. The view of the distant beach through the window and the smell of Yuri’s mother’s cooking wafting up into their room. Still relaxed from a soak in the hot spring the night before.

 

               Right now, he would accept either option eagerly and with no regrets.

 

               “Good morning, Vitya.” Yuri’s voice proceeds his entry onto the balcony and Victor opens his eyes and watches his boyfriend slide into the chair across from him.

 

               Yuri is barefoot as well, dressed in a thin T-shirt and baggy sweats. He’s brushed his hair so that it no longer resembles a tangled mop on the top of his head, and his glasses sit in their proper place across the bridge of his nose. He looks more awake and alert than before, and his smile is soft as he takes in the Belgian waffles underneath their piles of strawberries, blueberries, and fresh cream.

 

               “Morning, Yuri.” Victor’s smile spreads across his face naturally. As easy as breathing. As though it is meant to be there. Meant for Yuri and Yuri alone. “Sleep well?”

 

               “Yes.” Yuri reaches out for the glass of orange juice Victor had poured for him and takes and sip. “This looks amazing. You didn’t have to do this.”

 

               “I wanted to.” It’s as simple as that. “It’s a lovely view out here in the mornings.”

 

               Yuri hums his agreement and they begin to eat.

 

               It’s a nice, lazy morning. They move from topic to topic at their own pace. Sometimes they say nothing at all, content to either share warm looks across the table or to look out as the boats and gondolas make their smooth way through the water below them. Venice is waking up and there are people milling about on the scant sidewalk space, going about their day as they must do every morning. Either not know or not carrying about the pair high above them watching their progress as they enjoy their meal.

 

               It’s perfect.

 

~

 

               They spend the morning getting lost in Venice.

 

               Well, Victor gets lost. He has a sneaking suspicion Yuri knows exactly where they are the whole time and is ready to push them back in the right direction if he feels as though they are getting too far away from the beaten paths. It’s nice, the way Victor can truly let himself go when he’s with Yuri. That he doesn’t have to worry about where he’s going because he knows the other man has his back and won’t let him get into a situation where he can’t find his way back.

 

               But, even though Yuri must know he is aware of Yuri’s own awareness of where they are, the Japanese man doesn’t say anything to break the illusion. He just lets Victor take his hand and drag him along down narrow alleys and walkways. Allows him to call a water taxi to take them from one end of the city to another without ever asking where they are going or if Victor even has a concrete destination in mind.

 

               It’s exhilarating, knowing Yuri has placed his trust so firmly in Victor’s hands. That he would allow for such aimless wandering in a strange, new place.

 

               Yuri lets himself be drug through numerous boutiques and other shops. Victor doesn’t buy much, but he enjoys having Yuri pick things out, even though he knows Yuri won’t let him buy any of it. Enjoys trying on big floppy hats, and sunglasses with oversized lenses. Absorbs every escaped giggle that falls from Yuri’s lips as he wraps his neck in flowery silken scarves and flicks Yuri in the face with the ends as he dramatically whips it through the air.

 

               They are shopping more for gifts for family back home more than for themselves, and it’s fun. It’s like there isn’t any pressure on either of them. Like they really could just get lost in the middle of Venice and never care about finding their way home.

 

               Despite having shopped for the better portion of the morning and into the afternoon, they only have a handful of bags to show for it as they stumble back into the lobby of their hotel around lunchtime to drop the fruits of their explorations off.

 

               Victor has made plans to meet Phichit and Chris for lunch at a café a few blocks away from the hotel. He had been so tempted to just spend the whole day completely wrapped up in Yuri, but he figured this would make for a nice break. Give them a chance to decompress and recharge.

 

               Plus, it was actually quite nice. Going on double dates with his friends. It took some of the pressure off and spending time with the other pair was always enjoyable.

 

               “What did you do this morning?” Yuri asks as they settle down at a table on a cobblestone patio under a wide umbrella.

 

               “We went on a boat tour of the city.” Phichit supplies this answer as he reaches for one of the menus the waiter has left on their table. Chris and Phichit look happy and relaxed, just like Victor knows they look as well. It seems like a date day has done all four of them well. “The buildings here are so beautiful. We got a ton of amazing pictures. Guang Hong is going to be so jealous when he sees them.”

 

               “What kept you busy this morning?” Chris forgoes picking up his own menu. Instead, he has chosen to scoot his chair closer to Phichit and is practically in the Thai man’s lap as he rests his head on his shoulder in order to peruse his options.

 

               “Shopping.” Victor almost falls out of his chair as Yuri moves to mirror the position their friends are in across the table. He clears his throat, trying to ignore the way Yuri now has a hand placed on his thigh for support as he leans even closer to try and see the far corner of the menu. “We mostly just wandered aimlessly. Shopping.”

 

               Chris raises an eyebrow at this and Victor sends him a stern look back. His friend chuckles and turns his attention back to the menu in front of him, murmuring something under his breath into Phichit’s ear, the smaller man smirking and letting out a low chuckle of his own before lifting a hand to point to something towards the bottom corner of the menu.

 

               The waiter comes and takes their orders, leaving their previously orders coffees in his wake. Victor had done some research a few days ago and this café was chosen specifically because it advertised English menus and wait staff fluent in the language. He’d wanted the day to go smoothly, and fumbling around trying to order in a foreign language would have shattered the perfect imagine he was trying to create for the day.

 

               The menus gone, Yuri moves a respectable distance away and Chris does the same, after Phichit pushes him a few times and offers a gentle reminder that it is difficult to drink his expresso with Chris hanging off his dominant arm. Not that Chris doesn’t go without a fight. And Yuri says Victor is the clingy one.

 

               By the time their food is brought out to them, they are deep in an animated conversation about their friends.

 

               “Does anyone know what Yurio and Otabeck even do when they disappear like this?” Chris asks, aiming the question more towards Victor and Yuri since they are most likely the ones to have a semi-reasonable guess.

 

               “Nope. Not a clue.” Victor responds and he can see Yuri offer up a shrug out of the corner of his eye. “We are just as scared to ask as you are, quite frankly.”

 

               “I’m pretty sure they aren’t doing drug or selling organs on the black market. Other than that, it could be anything.” Yuri take a delicate bite out of his sandwich. He pauses long enough to chew and swallow before continuing. “They’re adults. If they don’t want us to know what they’re up to, they don’t have to tell us.”

 

               “You don’t even have a guess?” Phichit looks disappointed, but at a stern look from Yuri, he drops that topic and moves onto the next. “I think Guang Hong and Seung-Gil have a thing.”

 

               Victor nearly spits out his coffee and Yuri has to thump him on the back a few times before he can breathe normally again. For what it’s worth, Chris is now looking at Phichit like he’s grown a second head and he’s not sure whether to be disgusted or curious about this newest development.

 

               “What?” Yuri is the only one apparently capable of asking the question that is on all of their tongues. “You can’t be serious…”

 

               “Why not? Guang Hong is a photography major. Seung-Gil has a thing for art exhibits, particularly photography shows.” Phichit holds up his hand and mimes weighing the evidence. “It all adds up.”

 

               “I think you’re closer with your theory that Michele and Sara are fighting over Emil than you are with that, my lovely one.” Chris’ English is the next to return and he is sending his boyfriend a look of bewilderment mixed with fondness. “If Guang Hong is going to have a thing with anyone, it’s going to be Leo. They are basically surgically attached at the hip.”

 

               “Eh, I don’t think so.” Phichit pauses to take a bite of the pasta salad on his plate. “I mean, they are totally adorable together, don’t get me wrong, but I just don’t see it. It’s like they are _too_ adorable together.”

 

               “You say that about Yuri and I all the time.” Victor points out.

 

               “That’s different!” Now Phichit is in full backtrack mode. “You two are soulmates. You’re _supposed_ to be too adorable. That’s just science.”

 

               “I’m pretty sure your logic is flawed.” Yuri sighs, but it is a fond sigh. As though he had more than resigned himself to his friend’s antics by now. “Not everyone has to be hooking up, you know. All three of them could just be really good friends.”

 

               “Like how I’m really good friends with Chris, or you’re really good friends with Victor?”

 

               “I’m going to have to say that we have all passed the threshold of being just ‘really good friends’ by this point. Wouldn’t you agree, Chris?” They share a laugh as Chris nod enthusiastically from across the table at Victor’s words. “Yuri has a point. Boys can be friends with other boys without wanting to get into their pants. I don’t want to get into your pants and we’re still friends.”

 

               “You mean you never thought about it? Not even once?” Victor shakes his head and Phichit pouts for a brief second before brightening up. “Ah, I forgot. You met me after you’d run into Yuri that day. I didn’t even stand a chance.”

 

               “You most certainly did not.” Even though he knows his statement will trigger Yuri’s blush and an abrupt conversation change, he says it anyway. His parents had always taught him to tell the truth, after all. What else was he supposed to do?

 

               They linger over lunch, enjoying the sunny day and the pleasant company. Before they go, Phichit and Yuri excuse themselves to use the facilities and Victor and Chris find themselves alone.

 

               “ _You still planning on the grand dinner plans_?” Chris leans across the table and switches to French. Victor mirrors his position and does the same. The last thing he wants is for Yuri or Phichit to turn up too soon and ruining the surprise.

 

               “ _Of course. Are you still planning on taking your boy to opera?_ ”

 

               “ _Yes. Thank you for prying the fact that Phichit has a soft spot for dramatic Italian operas from Yuri, by the way._ ” Chris pauses, glancing over his shoulder and shifting nervously in his seat.

 

               Victor frowns. “ _If you want to ask me something, just ask me. It won’t take them that long to make their way back to us._ ”

 

               “ _Your plans… Is there anything… Special you are planning to do tonight? Something you might not have told me about in case I let it slip to your boy’s best friend in a moment of passion perhaps?_”

 

               Victor doesn’t even have to fake the look on confusion on his face. He can honestly say he has absolutely no idea what Chris is trying to get at here.

 

               “ _Nothing in particular springs to mind. Why do you ask? Have you heard something I should know about?_ ” He tries not to be worried. Tries not to jump to the worst conclusion in his mind, but he can’t help but to be concerned.

 

               “ _It’s just… Well, Phichit might have made an off-hand comment to Yuri the other day that there might be an ulterior motive to your evening plans._ ” Chris shuffles around in his seat, clearly struggling to figure out exactly how he wants to phrase his next sentence. “ _A coda to your evening that might include something round and golden, perhaps?_ ”

 

               It hits Victor square in the face like a ton of bricks.

 

               There is a moment where the world grinds to a dead stop. Then he sits back, crossed his arms over his chest, throws his head back, and laughs.

 

               “ _Phichit thinks I might ask Yuri to marry me?_” Victor knows he shouldn’t be laughing. Knows this is not a humorous subject at all, but he just can’t help it. “ _Don’t get me wrong, I have every intention of doing just that eventually, but not now. The timing is not right. When that day comes, everything has to be perfect. Right now… Right now, it’s close, but there’s still something there. Some piece of himself he is hiding from me. Once he feels comfortable giving that piece to me, that is when I’ll ask._ ”

 

               “ _Holy shit. You are totally serious about that. Congratulations. In advance._ ” Chris leans back now, looking relieved and quite a bit calmer. “ _I told him I didn’t think you would do it tonight, but, you know… Had to ask to be sure._ ”

 

               “ _Sleep easy. I don’t even have a ring yet. Don’t actually know which size to get yet to be honest._ ” It wasn’t that Victor hadn’t thought about buying just that on more than one occasion. Just earlier that morning they had been in a quaint jewelry shop and he’d seen a pair that would have been perfect, but he’d passed them by. Yuri wasn’t ready yet. He didn’t know how he knew that. It was more a feeling than anything concrete, but he knew it to be true.

 

               The moment he was, however, Victor was definitely going to be ready for it.

 

~

 

               After they had parted ways with their friends that afternoon, Victor had taken Yuri to an outdoor theater where a local children’s troupe was putting on a summer production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It was done in Italian and clearly modified to accommodate the performances by children in an age range of 8-15, but it was entertaining and the sets were gorgeous.

 

               It helped that they were both familiar with the source material and were able to fill in the gaps well enough when their limited knowledge of the language or the execution of the performers wavered.

 

               As the sun began to set, Victor led them back to the grand canal where there was a large gondola waiting for them exactly where Victor had requested it to be.

 

               “You did not seriously book us a sunset dinner for two on a gondola ride through the canals of Venice, did you?’

 

               “If I say, no, will you still get in the boat?” Victor knows enough about Yuri’s moods to tell that he’s just sounding exasperated for the sake of sounding exasperated rather than any true feelings of malaise at Victor’s plans.

 

               Victor is rewarded by a solid eye roll, a kiss on the cheek, and Yuri resting his hand on Victor’s shoulder for balance as he steps down into the boat, scooting down the bench to give Victor enough space to climb in behind him.

 

               As their gondolier pushes away from the sidewalk and into the wide canal, he begins to sing.

 

               “Is he going to do that the whole time?”

 

               “Probably not, but I was under the impression it will be a good portion of it.” Victor slips his arm around Yuri’s waist and pulls him close. Yuri instantly melds into Victor’s side as though that is exactly where he belongs. “Ignore him. Tonight is about us.”

 

               “Hmm…” Yuri watches as Victor pulls the two plates with silver domes covering them closer. “Dinner, candlelight, a romantic sunset boat ride… Is there anything else you have planned?”

 

               “There might be a bouquet of three dozen blue roses waiting for us back at the hotel.”

 

               “Vitya… Blue roses?” Yuri pulls back and stares at Victor. Even in the dimming light, Victor can see he is happy. There is nothing but love in those eyes and he preens under his boyfriend’s gaze.

 

               “Blue is your favorite color.” He states simply. Shouldn’t that have been obvious?

 

               “Where did you get roses in the middle of Venice in the summer?”

 

               “That’s for me to know and you to constantly wonder. Honestly, Yuri, I can’t give away all my secrets. However will I keep surprising you the way you constantly surprise me?” Victor can’t resist and he pulls Yuri close and kisses him soundly.

 

               “This kind of surprise is nice every once in a while.” Yuri admit as he pulls back out of the kiss. “Just not all the time, okay?”

 

               “Of course. It wouldn’t be so special if I took you on fantastic dinner boat rides at sunset every night.” Victor rubs his thumb against the smooth skin at Yuri’s waist.

 

               “I love you, Vitya.”

 

               “And I love you, Yuri. Always will.”


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Now that everyone is all warm and fuzzy from the fluff that was the last chapter... Remember that storm that keeps advancing and then receding and then advancing again? Yeah.... It's about time for that hurricane to come ashore. Brace yourselves. The next few chapters are going to be rough.
> 
> I PROMISE THERE WILL BE A HAPPY ENDING!!

               August – The United Kingdom

 

               Their plane arrives in London early on a foggy August morning. There is a pep back in everyone’s step that has been missing since just before Spain. It was as though the restful summer had finally recharged their batteries, or maybe they were just used to hopping from place to place by now. It could have gone either way.

 

               As it was, Victor was feeling particularly content. With Yuri tucked into his side from the moment they’d received their bags and all through the short bus ride from the airport to campus, what else could he be, but content?

 

               And if Yuri looks a little paler than usual, he doesn’t spend much time thinking about it. There had been more late nights and early mornings for Yuri lately. Victor is hoping that a few days of dreary weather like the forecast has threatened might do Yuri some good. Hoping that maybe if there aren’t as many invitations for outings, he might be able to convince Yuri to take a few naps and recharge.

 

               He’d held out hope that whoever he ended up rooming with would want to maybe pull another switch so that he could share with Yuri again, but as soon as he saw Yurio’s name on the list next to his own, he knew that was a pipe dream. Yurio would never elect to willingly switch to a room with a student he might not like just so Victor could have another month alone with his boyfriend. The boy wasn’t as disdainful of humanity in general as he liked to project, but he was just prickly enough for Victor to understand that option would be off the table.

 

               He didn’t even bother to see who Yuri was rooming with and they parted at one end of the hall on the second floor of the dorm with a tight hug and a chaste kiss. He tried to hide how it felt like his heart was ripping in two as he walked away. Tried to convince himself that he was just being dramatic.

 

               Victor had just hauled his three suitcases onto his bed as was about to unzip the first one to begin the, now very familiar, routine of unpacking when Yurio burst into the room with his typical flair for the dramatic.

 

               “ **You. Get your shit and come with me. Now.** ”

 

               “ **What?** ” Out of all the things Victor had been expecting, that reaction was not one of them. Curious and almost a little scared, Victor grabbed his bag and shrugged his backpack back onto his shoulders, tripping over his own two feet in his haste to follow Yurio back into the hall.

 

               He supposed he should have seen Yurio trying to kick him out coming, but he thought he’d have a few days at least before it got to this point. He’d also thought there’d a lot more yelling involved. In fact, Yurio was deathly calm, a fact that probably contributed to Victor’s instant willingness to go along with this… Whatever this was.

 

               “ **Where are we going?** ” Victor was concerned Yurio would either outright refuse to tell him or start yelling. Neither happened.

 

               “ **You’ll see.** ”

 

               Well, that was actually worse than yelling somehow.

 

               Victor was fairly confident Yurio understood how difficult it would be to drag a dead body through the streets of London without drawing too much attention to himself, but there was always that little speck of doubt at the back of his mind that warned him Yurio might just not care if Victor gave him enough of a reason.

 

               It didn’t take long for them to reach the other end of the hall. Yurio stopped in front of a door off to the right and didn’t even knock before he pushed it open with enough force to cause it to slam into the wall on the other side and the room’s occupants to jump to their feet.

 

               “ **Beka, come on. Get your shit. Let’s go.** ”

 

               Otabeck instantly complied, muttering something to the Russian teen under his breath as he went, bags dragging behind him, door clicking shut in his wake.

 

               That left Victor standing in the middle of the room, staring at his new roommate.

 

               “Hello, Yuri.”

 

~

 

               “ **I wasn’t doing it to be nice.** ” Yurio grumbled around a mouthful of some kind of chocolate pastry. “ **I wanted to room with Beka. You wanted to room with Yuri. It just made sense. Don’t think this means I fucking like you or something dumb like that.** ”

 

               “ **Wouldn’t dream of it.** ” Victor was pretty sure Yurio had more than just wanting to room with his best friend as a motive behind his earlier actions, but he wasn’t about to call the other Russian out for it in case Yurio changed his mind just be contrary. “ **Thank you, though.** ”

 

               Yurio growled low in his throat, warning Victor not to push his luck.

 

               “I still don’t understand why they even bother with these room assignments. It’s not like anyone listens to them anymore.” Victor turns back to the English conversation that had been continuing while he and Yurio had exchanged words. They had found a bakery with an indoor eating space and Phichit was poking Yuri in the side from his position on the Japanese man’s left, Yuri squirming closer to Victor as he tried to get away from his friend. “You should just ask to have Victor as your permanent roommate and save us all the trouble of having to switch around.”

 

               “I don’t think they would let us do that.” Yuri was now trying to slap Phichit’s hands away from him a little more forcefully. “Come on, you know I’m ticklish.”

 

               “Sorry, can’t help it. You know how I feel about exploiting the weaknesses of my friends and allies.” Phichit doesn’t look sorry in Victor’s option, but he does move his hands back to his side of the table. “Victor, don’t you think it can’t hurt to ask?”

 

               “I suppose not.” Victor hadn’t thought about asking the administration if they could just dispense with all the pretense and make sure they could stay together for the rest of the year. He’d been resting his hat on the notion that by now the whole class knew Yuri and he were practically living together and that there would always be plenty of people that he could convince to make the switch. “That is not a bad idea.”

 

               “You really think they would go for it?” Otabeck asks. Victor had noticed he’d been more talkative lately. It was nice, and it meant Yurio stayed a lot calmer in Otabeck’s presence than ever before. “Didn’t those contracts we signed at the beginning of the year have a clause in them about roommate assignments.”

 

               “It did.” Yuri is quick to confirm. Although he most likely should have seen it coming, he’s still a bit surprised and impressed Yuri remembers what most have amounted to little more than a sentence or two on a twenty page document they’d all signed back in January. “They have some clauses for being able to maintain a roommate assignment for more than one month at a time officially, but Victor and I do not meet the criteria.”

 

               “What’s the criteria?” Chris is quick to ask, barely bothering to mask his obvious personal interest in the situation. “You know… In case I know some other… People… Who might want to pursue this line of inquiry in the not too distant future. You know, just for the hell of it.”

 

               It’s been a while since Victor has seen Yuri turn that particular shade of violent red. It is no less adorable now than it was then.

 

               “Ah, well… It’s… It’s not something easy. I-I mean… You know… T-that is…” Yuri takes a deep breath and Victor assumes he must be counting to ten in his head as he is silent for about that long before he is able to speak again without stuttering. “You would have to actually be married for that clause to qualify.”

 

               The silence is awkward and heavy and downright _painful_.

 

               At least until Yurio clears his throat before letting out a rough bark of laughter. “Looks like you’re all just fucked then.”

 

               Uncomfortable moment effectively broken in true Yurio fashion, they ease the conversation back onto more neutral topics. It helps even more when about ten minutes later Guang Hong and Leo pass by, seeing their group through the window and choosing to join them.

 

               And if Victor and Yuri are both a little more subdued that usual for the rest of the afternoon, no one comments on it, much to Victor’s relief.

 

~

 

               It’s two days after they’ve arrived in London and Victor finds himself alone with Phichit for the first time since they had shared a room together all those months ago back in China. Phichit had been wanting snacks and Chris was in the shower and Yuri was engrossed in his laptop again so Victor had offered to accompany him. With the gloomy weather, he was beginning to go stir crazy. Stretching his legs could only do him good.

 

               The weather hasn’t improved much, it’s been rainy and chilly despite that fact that it’s still technically still summer. Phichit and Victor are trapped under the overhang of bookstore, eyeing the drizzle and debating whether they want to run the risk of making a break for the dorm and possibly ending up caught in the downpour that has been threatening since lunchtime.

 

               “I knew it was a bad idea to try and make a snack run. I knew it, but the urge for unhealthy, sugary goodness could not be denied.” Phichit had his back pressed up against the brick wall behind them, plastic bag hanging limply from his fingertips as he looks as though he is weighing his options. He lets out a huff of air and glares at where a steady drip of water is coming in through a crack in the overhang, landing by his right foot and splashing droplets onto the tops of his trainers. “No offense to you, but I wish Yuri hadn’t been too busy to come with me. I’ll bet he’d have an umbrella tucked in his back pocket and two ponchos hidden up his sleeve.”

 

               “No offense taken. You’re right. Although, to be fair to me, Yuri didn’t want to go for the very reason that he knew we were going to get caught in the rain and he didn’t want to be responsible for lugging around the gear we would need to get back dry.” Sometimes Victor wonders if he should be irritated or annoyed with Yuri’s constantly prepared nature. Then he remembers days like the one they spent in Seoul or Venice, where Yuri had allowed Victor to lead the way, even when it was painfully obvious he hadn’t the faintest clue where they were headed. “Should it annoy me that he’s always right?”

 

               “He’s not _always_ right. He’s _often_ right. Those are two different things.” Victor isn’t sure if that distinction really matters since even when Yuri is wrong he’s still completely prepared for that eventuality, but he’s willing to roll with it. “Speaking of Yuri, is it just me, or has he seemed _off_ lately. Like in an ‘I can’t quite put my finger on what it is, but there’s definitely something weird’ kind of way?”

 

               Victor wracks his brain, running over all his interactions with Yuri over the past few weeks. There are a lot of interactions to shift through since it’s rare that Yuri isn’t either right at his side or no too far away lately.

 

               He’s about to say that he hasn’t noticed anything out of the ordinary, when something nagging at the back of his mind makes him stop and reconsider.

 

               Now that he thinks about it from a more critical angle, Phichit might not be wrong. It’s subtle. Almost too subtle. If he didn’t know Yuri as well he did, he would have missed it. He almost had missed it since he was inundated with Yuri every waking moment.

 

               It was those rare moments when he was off to himself. Either when he was working or, had excused himself from the group to take yet another long distance call from Mari. It was nothing concrete, nothing substantial. It was just an air he had about him in those moments. A slight hunching of his shoulders, the way he would turn his head so that his friends couldn’t see his face clearly. His lips were chapped from where he would nibble on them, a habit Victor had realized Yuri subconsciously indulged in when he was nervous or upset about something and wasn’t at the stage where he wanted to talk about it yet.

 

               Sometimes in the middle of conversation, Yuri would seem far away for a split second, as though he were looking at something on the other side of the veil that no one else present could see. Victor had thought it was just stress. That Yuri’s mind was full with the project back in Japan. Those little lapses passed before anyone could comment or even really noticed they’d happened at all and Victor had pushed his observations to the back of his mind because ninety-nine percent of the time Yuri was his usual self.

 

               Phichit was watching him. Waiting for him to connect the dots. For the briefest of moments Victor felt the stir of guilt in the pit of his stomach. Shouldn’t _he_ have been the one to put two and two together? Wasn’t that _his_ job as Yuri’s boyfriend? But Phichit was Yuri’s friend long before Victor was his boyfriend. Phichit had two years of practice on him. Instead of giving in to his gut instinct of putting Phichit off and allowing his pride to convinced himself that if there was something bothering Yuri he would _know_ , damn it, he gave in.

 

               “Do you know something?” Victor asked, trying to keep the edge of desperation out of his voice. From Phichit’s concerned look, he hadn’t managed to restrain it all. “Putting all the pieces together it’s pretty obvious something is bothering him, something other than usual stress, but he hasn’t said anything to me.”

 

               “He won’t.” Phichit shrugs and refuses to look Victor in the eye. “He won’t ever say something until it’s far too late. Half the time I think he’s so good at fooling the rest of us that he ends up fooling himself by proxy. Convinces himself that he’s okay, the same way he convinces you and I of the same. It’s like he’s always blindsided when the bad feelings catch up to him.”

 

               “Is that what you think is happening? That he’s trying so hard not to make himself anxious that it’s making him anxious?” A year ago, Victor would have found that statement patently ridiculous. Now… Now he had a different frame of reference.

 

               “That does tend to be how these things go.” Victor fidgeted, waiting for Phichit to go on. Waiting for the Thai man to turn and look at him. To acknowledge this nebulous thing that was happening to a person they both deeply cared for by looking Victor in the eye. “You’ve been good for him. He’s been better, happier with you. But love isn’t a cure for mental issues.”

 

               “I’m proud of you.” Finally, _finally_ , Phichit looks over at him. Victor can feel his own breath die in his lungs. Phichit is upset. Visibly upset. Not hysterical like he’d been back in Switzerland, but there are shades of that resting over him like a shroud. “You haven’t treated him like he was someone that needed to be treated with soft words and kid gloves. He deserves that. He more than anyone else knows that even with all the coddling in the world, he’s going to have dark times.”

 

               “Why now? Did I do something? Did I not do something?” It was still so hard to come to terms with the fact that there might not be anything Victor could have done or said to stop the storm that was growing on the horizon. His rational mind knew it, but his heart was screaming that there had to have been something, somewhere, Victor could have done to prevent Yuri from having to go down this path again. Something he could have said, or something that he had said that he shouldn’t.

 

               “If you are serious about this. If Yuri is something you want to hold onto, the sooner you make peace with the fact that you could be the most perfect human being on the face of the planet and he’s still going to have an attack eventually, the better it will be for the both of you.” Phichit shuffles his plastic grocery bag into his other hand and grabs Victor’s shoulder in his firm grip. “I’m not telling you this because I want to you go back there and try to talk him out of panicking. We both know that wouldn’t work anyway. It might even trigger his panic. I’m telling you this because I don’t want you to be blindsided the same way he will be. When the bad things get the best of him, there is no cure. There is only riding it out and waiting for the storm to pass.”

 

               “There is only being there on the other side. Being there to grab him once he’s passed through the worst of it and helping to put him back together again. All you have to do is be ready to catch him when he’s done falling.”

 

               Phichit’s next words cut through him to his very core. Lodge in his heart and pierce him where it hurts the most.

 

               “If you don’t think you can do that, you need to end it. Now. Before you both get hurt even worse.”

 

               There was a part of Victor that wanted to slap Phichit. He had never been a violent man, more liable to smile indulgently and lay down a biting backhanded compliment when faced with confrontation. So, no, he had never been a violent man, but the mere suggestion of Victor wanting to turn tail and run just because Yuri was going to go through a rough patch made him furious in a way he wasn’t used to feeling.

 

               He didn’t lash out, though. The rational part of his brain stopped him after he had clenched his fist at his side but before he could do anything with it. Phichit wasn’t trying to hurt his feelings. Wasn’t trying to make Victor feel like shit, even though that was a side effect of his blunt words. He was doing exactly what Yuri expected them to do with him

 

               He was being honest.

 

               Even when that brutal honesty was the last thing Victor wanted to hear.

 

               “I’m not going anywhere.”

 

               And he wasn’t. Victor meant it. When it came to Yuri, Victor would always mean it.

 

               Was he in over his head? Yes. Was he scared out of his mind? Completely. Did he know what he was going to do when the storm finally broke against the shore and they were both tossed adrift into the waves? Absolutely not.

 

               Was he going to try his damnedest to figure it out?

 

               Hell yes.

 

               “The waiting is the worst part, I promise. The not knowing exactly when the first wave is going to hit.” Phichit was staring back out at the where the drizzle was now turning into a light mist. “Once everything is over with and your own panic subsides, you’ll look back and realize sitting there feeling the static from the lightening in the air is far worse than when the bolts finally become visible. Because once they do hit, and they will hit harder than you could ever anticipate, all you can do is trust. Trust Yuri. Trust that he knows what he needs to do to pull through it.”

 

               There is more he wants to say. He wants to grab Phichit by the shoulders and shake more details out of him. He wants to throw himself at the other man’s feet and admit how terrified his he. Beg for Phichit to tell him what to do. Victor has never been good with dealing with other people when they were upset and he has the feeling that whatever is happening with Yuri is going to be far beyond just being upset.

 

               He wants to, but he does none of these things. He just nods, accepting the solemn burden Phichit has entrusted upon him. Knows that he will not let Phichit down. Will not let Yuri down.

 

               “Thank you, Phichit. Thank you.”

 

~

 

               There’s been a buzz surrounding Yuri for the past week or so. Ever since Venice.

 

               It’s like a gnat flying by his ear over and over. Sometimes it is soft, easy to ignore. Sometimes it’s loud, encompassing everything until Yuri feels like he’s going to bolt out of his skin. It comes and it goes, circling from one side to the other. It flies by his right ear and leaves him deaf and then it’s a whisper in his left, causing him to reach the limits of his sense to try and parse the sound from all the other background noise in his life.

 

               It is ever present and ever changing, slipping away before Yuri can pin it down.

 

               It makes his skin twitch, his scalp itch, his throat burn. It’s everything and nothing all at once and it keeps him on edge to the point where he is just plain exhausted.

 

               But there’s nothing wrong. Yuri knows there is nothing wrong. That’s the worst part. There is nothing wrong, and yet his own body is trying to convince him that there is.

 

               No one seems to notice. Or, if they do, they don’t say anything. If they hear the buzz, too, they don’t mention it. He’s not being treated any differently. Phichit is his usual bright ray of sunshine. Chris is incorrigible as he always is. Victor is… Victor is clingy and amazing and everything Yuri had never known he wanted until it was right there in his grasp.

 

               So, nothing is different. Nothing is wrong.

 

               The buzzing continues.

 

               “What do you think, Yuri?”

 

               Yuri blinks, struggling to bring his brain back into focus. Trying to follow where the thread of conversation was going before he drifted off. How long had he been staring into space? It couldn’t have been too long as Chris doesn’t seem concerned.

 

               What had they been talking about?

 

               He picks out the subtleties in Chris’ expression. The Swiss man looks excited… Happy… In love…

 

               Love. Chris loves Phichit. They had been talking about Phichit. Phichit who loves Chris back and who had gone with Victor to go get snacks twenty minutes ago. Phichit and Victor who were still not back yet…

 

               There it is.

 

               “I think I can hear rain against the window. I’ll bet they are stuck somewhere waiting it out.” Yuri watches Chris’ face again. The other man’s green eyes light up, his lips quirk in a resigned smile. Alright. That had been the right thing to say. Yuri continues to run with it. “You know how Victor hates getting his hair wet.”

 

               Laughter. That was good. He liked it when he could make his friends laugh. Maybe he should feel guilty about making fun of Victor, though. Victor wasn’t even there to defend himself.

 

               “I have to say that you are right. I don’t know how you put up with him. I’ve seen his toiletry bag. There’s enough moisturizer in there to keep an entire modeling agency in soft, silky skin for years.” Now Yuri is laughing. He hopes it doesn’t sounds as hollow as it feels.

 

               What the hell is wrong with him?

 

               The buzzing is still there. It’s softer now, just barely muting the edges of the conversation. Enough to be distracting, but not enough to draw him out of the conversation entirely.

 

               Chris doesn’t seem to think there is anything wrong, at least. So, by that measure, there shouldn’t be anything wrong at all.

 

               Yuri lets that thought comfort him.

 

               “It’s tough, but I manage.” Yuri smiles, Chris smiles. That feels normal. This is normal. Sure, he doesn’t spend a ton of alone time with Chris, but that’s mostly because Victor is clingy. That’s fine. Yuri doesn’t mind clingy.

 

               Does he?

 

               The buzzing gets louder.

 

               “You are a better man than I, my friend.”

 

               “You don’t exactly have it easy either. I’ve lived with Phichit for years.” Okay, that’s better. Talking about Phichit feels even more normal than talking about Victor. The buzzing recedes. “Sometimes I think he was being messy just for the sake of making my eye twitch.”

 

               “Oh, he definitely was.” Chris winks and Yuri laughs again. It easy to let Chris’ good mood raise him back up. “Don’t tell him I spilled the beans, but he told me you would clench your jaw and get this adorable wrinkle between your eyes. He tried to get a picture of it one time, but you apparently noticed and threw a dishrag over his camera before he could get a clear shot.”

 

               “I remember that.” It is a fond memory. They’d gone out for ramen after that and Phichit had gotten drunk, drug Yuri into a karaoke place down the road, and ended up dancing on a table with some Japanese businessmen at two in the morning. Yuri still had the videos. Speaking of the videos… “Oh! I have some good blackmail material for you.”

 

               Yuri grabs his phone. Sends the videos. Waits until Chris views them from beginning to end.

 

               They are laughing hysterically when Phichit and Chris show up at long last.

 

               Victor looks like a mess. His jeans have been rolled up and cuffed at mid-calf. The shoulders of his jumper are damp, the dark blue turning to navy where it’s gotten wet. Water drip from his bangs and rolls down his pale face, dripping from his chin.

 

               The buzzing intensifies.

 

               Almost drowns everything out.

 

               Yuri blinks. Pulls himself together. Gets through the rest of the evening by putting one half of his headphones in and offering up the excuse that he has some urgent work to do. He keeps half an ear on the conversation and offers input every so often, but his mind isn’t able to focus on much of anything. The earbud is silent. He doesn’t have music playing.

 

               Just the buzz.

 

               They don’t stay up much later. Victor and Phichit are uncomfortable in their damp clothes and Victor whines about wanting a shower and an early night. Yuri is happy to comply. Maybe he’s just tired. Working too hard again. If he isn’t careful, he’ll get sick again. Turning in early sounds like the perfect solution. In the morning, he’ll be right as rain.

 

               Yuri settles in on the bed. Victor flits around the room, chattering about something the apparently doesn’t require an answer. Yuri is happy to let him do it. He loves to hear Victor’s voice. Love the way the Russian accent adds unexpected dips and trills to certain letters.

 

               The buzzing gets louder still.

 

               “Let me take a quick shower and then we can go to bed, okay?” Yuri nods. Victor smiles, kisses him on the top of his head, sashays off to the shower.

 

               The door closes behind him.

 

               The room is empty.

 

               No, that’s not right. Yuri is still there so the room can’t be empty. But it feels empty.

 

               It feels empty because Victor is always _there._ And now he's not.

 

               Yuri lets the past half a year wash over him in waves and Victor is always there.

 

               In Japan, they were acquaintances. Victor started on the outskirts of their study group and then worked his way into the inner circle. Wherever he knew Yuri was going to be, he was there. Following Yuri like the lost puppy he was. He’d even followed Yuri home. Ate dinner with his family, skated with him on his home ice where Yuri had once gone to escape reality and dream, bathed with him in the hot springs until they were light-headed and their fingers had turned into prunes.

 

               In Korea, they were friends. Yuri spent more time with him, less time with the others. For the first time in as long as he could remember, Yuri let himself push all his reservations to the side and just enjoy himself. At Chris’ party, Yuri had let himself being carried away. Afterwards he thought Victor would never want to see him again.

 

               In China, Victor was still there. Even though Yuri pushed him away as hard as he could, Victor pushed back. For the first time, someone other than Phichit wouldn’t just stand there quietly and let Yuri walk away. For the first time in his entire life, someone he loved more than just as a friend reached out for him before he could close the door forever and begged him to stay.

 

               In Russia, they were boyfriends. Yuri still couldn’t believe he’d been able to say that word. Boyfriend. But he’d said it. In front of Victor’s parents, no less. Then they’d gone back to Victor’s flat and of course Victor had been there. That was his home. Yuri had been the invader in that situation, but he hadn’t felt like one. Victor had made him feel like he belonged. Like they belonged together.

 

               In Switzerland, they were in love. Yuri woke up alone that month, but it didn’t seem to matter because Victor was always waiting for him as soon as he left his room. Sometimes he didn’t even wait that long, knocking and waking Yuri up long before he wanted to be conscious and dragging him from place to place with that unfairly adorable smile of his. There was a night, on a deck in the mountains where Victor had embraced Yuri’s best friend and had been so understanding.

 

               In Spain, they lived together. Really lived together. Not like in Russia, where it still felt like something was missing, like they were both actors still trying to find their bearings in a new script. Victor was there all the time. He was there in bed with him in the morning. They were sprawled out, legs tangled together on towels on the beach during the day. They were tucked away under a thin sheet during the night.

 

               In Italy, Yuri had thought Victor was going to propose. That would have been silly, of course. Even counting the days they were still flirting and unofficial, their time together didn’t add up to much in the grand scheme of things. There was still plenty of space on the calendar they should fill first before that should happen. It didn’t happen. It didn’t happen, but Yuri still didn’t know if he was relieved or disappointed. Probably some combination of the two. Victor was still there, but he wasn’t ready to say ‘forever’ in his actions, even though he was constantly saying it with his words. Which was fine. Yuri wasn’t saying it yet either.

 

               In the UK, Victor was still _here_.

 

               In less than five months, he wouldn’t be.

 

               In less than five months, there wouldn’t be two sides to Yuri’s bed any longer. He would be back home, a lonely twin mattress without a second bed to press against it the only thing keeping him company. He would roll over in the morning and there would be nothing but empty space and a blank wall to greet him where there was once was blue eyes and silver hair and warm skin.

 

               Maybe it wouldn’t hurt so much if Victor wasn’t always _here_.

 

               The bathroom door opened. Yuri looked up, brown eyes connecting with Victor’s piercing blue.

 

               The buzzing stopped.

 

               He couldn’t breathe.


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> This chapter was incredibly difficult for me to write. It's shorter than my usual updates, but that is for a reason. I've posted a more in depth explanation on my tumblr for anyone who is interested.
> 
> Warning: The first scene includes a detailed description of a panic attack. If that is something that affects you, feel free to skip down to the where the second section begins and Victor's POV starts.
> 
> As always, thanks to everyone who is reading this. You are all wonderful.

 

 

               August – The United Kingdom

 

               The world stops.

 

               It doesn’t jolt or lurch or screech or shudder. It doesn’t slide or slip or come to rest. It doesn’t quake or shake or jerk.

 

               It just stops.

 

               One second it’s moving and the next second it’s not and Yuri _cannot breathe_.

 

               He wants to. His lungs ache with the breath he is not able to release. His diaphragm spasms in a vain attempt to force him to inhale, but his brain is disconnected from his body and it just _won’t_ _listen_.

 

               Victor is there. Yuri’s dulled senses tell him that. It’s impossible to ignore his presence anyway, not when that pale face and blue eyes are the only things he can see. Victor is there, but he is frozen to. Standing in the doorway with a towel around his shoulders and hair that is dripping onto the floor. Yuri swears the room is so silent that he can hear the water dripping onto the cheap tiled floor.

 

               Plop. Plop.

 

               Victor doesn’t move. He stays there, frozen, for a millennia. Eons pass, Yuri can hear the chatter of life cycling on the outskirts of what should be humanly possible to hear. So, eons pass, but they do not, frozen as they are.

 

               He needs to _breathe_.

 

               Yuri gasps, his body breaking through the lock his mind has on him at long last. He gasps, chest heaving, but he can’t expand his lungs enough to get in what he needs. It’s not like there’s an iron band around his chest. Iron is immutable. It’s rigid, inflexible. What is wrapped around him is heavy and it moves with him, squeezing and pinching and making each inhale far too shallow, each exhale far too deep.

 

               He gasps and then Victor is moving from across the room to his side.

 

               _Victor_ …

 

               There are tears now. Yuri can feel them burning a trail down his face. He is choking on them. Drowning. A warm hand presses against his back and Yuri instinctually curls away from it and into himself. His knees are presses against his chest, his forehead grinding against them. His own fingers cradle the back of his head and tangle in his hair. Pinpricks of pain radiate across his scalp as he pulls the fistfuls of hair one way and then another.

 

               Somewhere the rational part of himself notes that his glasses have fallen from his face and are now on the bed beside him. He opens his eyes and the world is blurrier than usual.

 

               A voice whispers to him at the periphery of his senses. A deep voice, distress evident in every syllable. He’s sure the words are in English, but right now Yuri can’t process any languages. Can’t process anything other than the cold bite of dread right under his sternum. An icicle that twists and burns with each violent shiver in his chest.

 

               _Victor_ …

 

               He’s ruining it. Already ruined it? Yes, already ruined it. He had worked so hard, pushed himself to exhaustion and illness trying to find a way to stay by Victor’s side once the year was up and all that hard work was now for nothing because he’d just ruined it. Who would want to stay with someone like Yuri? Who would want to deal with this mess?

 

               Yuri knew he didn’t. He would do it because he didn’t have a choice. Didn’t have a way to carve this rotten spot out of his core. The anxiety and fear was a part of himself and he couldn’t excise it no matter how hard he tried. No matter how high the wall, how solid the material, it always broke down in the end. A crack would appear and then it would all come tumbling down.

 

               Victor, though. Victor could leave.

 

               Would leave.

 

               Everyone always left.

 

               Rational Yuri howled from the cage he was trapped in. Shouting that wasn’t true. Not everyone left. He had his family. He had his friends. Phichit never left. Victor…

 

               Victor hadn’t left yet.

 

               Yet.

 

               Yuri struggled to gain control. Focused on the circles being rubbed into his back and the soft words being whispered into his ear. Not English after all, some detached part of him realized. Russian.

 

               _Victor_ …

 

               He takes his hands from his hair and wraps his arms around his shins, pulling until the front of his thighs are squeezed against his chest. Trying to physically hold everything together even though it’s not his body that is currently breaking apart.

 

               His throat worked, words caught there, lodged in the soft tissue as nothing more than a high-pitched squeak came out. He tried again. This time words did come, but they were said in Japanese and mumbled into his thighs. One more time.

 

               “Bag… Victor… My bag… Please…”

 

               The motions against his back stuttered to a stop before the pressure disappeared entirely. Yuri groaned as he dug his fingernails into the tender skin behind his knees. His body shivered violently and it felt like an eternity before there was warmth at his back again.

 

               “Yuri, I have your bag. What do you need? Tell me.” Victor’s voice was soft, but firm. No hint of a stutter, but there was an undercurrent of something Yuri recognized as concern. Maybe even fear. No, Yuri couldn’t think about that right now. He had to focus. The longer this went on, the worse it was going to get. He had to cut the head off the snake before it could wriggle into his very bones.

 

               “Bottle. Zipper pocket.” Yuri tried to get enough air into his lungs to give further instructions, but ended up in a coughing fit for his efforts. He cheeks and neck felt sticky with tears. There was a tang of iron on his tongue. He must have either bitten it or the inside of his cheek at some point.

 

               He was aware of Victor rummaging through his bag. The rasp of a zipper. The clatter of pills bouncing against the hard plastic of a pill bottle. Yuri pinched the skin behind his knees and gasps at the sensation, but it was enough to clear his foggy thoughts enough to finish his instructions.

 

               “I need one. Just one.”

 

               “Okay.” More rattling sounds. A pop as the cap separated from the threads holding it in place. Victor murmuring more words of encouragement, gently pulling against Yuri’s shoulders in an attempt to get him to straighten up. “Yuri, you have to sit straight. You’re going to choke if you try to take it curled up like that. Please? For me?”

 

               How did Victor know the right thing to say? Had someone told him? How could he have known that Yuri would have done anything for him, even in this state? That all Victor had to do was ask and Yuri would do whatever it took to make it happen?

 

               Still pressing his knees to his chest, he lifted his head and unwrapped his right arm from its death grip around his shins. He held his hand out, palm facing upwards and stared at it until the blurry outline of the pale yellow pill appeared there. Without giving himself time to second guess himself and throw the pill on the ground in a fit of despair, he forced it past his lips and swallowed.

 

               “Do you need water?”

 

               Yuri shook his head, allowing it to fall back down to where he was resting his forehead on his kneecaps again. It was like he felt every tiny centimeter as the pill worked its way down his throat and settled in his stomach like a lead weight. No, he didn’t want water. Even something so inconsequential as water would upset his stomach and he did not want to waste this pill. He knew if he let it go, his anxiety would never let him get a second one down.

 

               He still couldn’t get a good breath. Still couldn’t fill his lungs with oxygen the way he so desperately needed. His head was spinning, dizziness ebbing and flowing in waves as he tried to wrestle his thoughts away from how much it was going to hurt with Victor inevitably walked away and channel them into counting every hyperventilation.

 

               There was a deep voice in his ear. Victor, his mind helpfully supplied. Victor was still there. He was… Counting?

 

               “One… Two… Three… Four… Five…. Come on, Yuri.” The pressure against his back was going in circles again. “Breathe in for five, out for ten. I know you can do it.”

 

               With Victor counting it was easier. There were a few rounds where his own counting was inconsistent, but Victor never wavered. He would just pause, change the direction of the circles he was rubbing along Yuri’s spine and start over.

 

               It took fifteen minutes before he was breathing normally again and every joint he had ached. His face felt hot and sticky. His abs were on fire form working so hard. The entire world felt fuzzy, enough for him to understand it was the medication helping to bolster the sense of calm Victor had already been instilling in him.

 

               One by one, his constricted muscles relaxed and the tension drained out of him in waves. He felt so tired. So utterly exhausted and empty. All he wanted to do was slump over onto his side and sleep for days.

 

               He couldn’t do that, though. Victor was still here. He had to talk to him.

 

               He had to explain.

 

~

 

               Phichit had been wrong. The waiting hadn’t been the hardest part. No, that honor belonged the intense feeling of _helplessness_ that smacked into him from head to toe as soon as he’d come out of the bathroom only to find Yuri staring at him, eyes wide and glassy and a million kilometers away.

 

               He froze.

 

               It felt like he stood in that doorway for an entire lifetime. Towel slung across his shoulders, hair and skin still damp from his shower. He stood there and he stared and he couldn’t figure out what he was supposed to do, or if he was supposed to _do_ anything at all.

 

               Then Yuri began to cry.

 

               It was an ugly cry. There was no other way to describe it. It was soul deep and biting, ripping the skin from his bone and leaving only emptiness inside. Yuri’s mouth was opened wide and the air came out of him in ragged bursts. Yuri’s eyes snapped shut and Victor moved without thinking.

 

               His need to comfort his love was all consuming. He didn’t even pause to think if his touch would be welcome, reaching out a hand to place it on Yuri’s back as the other man curled in on himself and buried his face in his knees. Dimly, Victor was aware of Yuri’s glasses falling off his face and bouncing into his lap before slipping and following the course of gravity onto the bed.

 

               His heart broke in two when Yuri flinched away from him.

 

               What should he do? What _could_ he do? Should he get Phichit? Phichit was used to this. He would know what Yuri would need when he was like this.

 

               But shouldn’t Victor know what he needed, too?

 

               He reached out again, still not thinking anything beyond that damned need to comfort. He wanted to pull Yuri into his arms, wanted to press himself against Yuri until the lines between where one ended and the other began were blurred into non-existence. He wanted to be Yuri’s lungs and breathe for him. Wanted to be Yuri’s arms and hold him tight.

 

               Yuri’s hands shoot up into his own hair and he begins to pull, but he doesn’t flinch away again. Doesn’t hide from Victor’s touch.

 

               “Yuri, my love… Yuri please, let me help you.”

 

Victor isn’t even sure Yuri is hearing him. His lips are turning blue now and Victor is terrified he’s going to cause himself to pass out. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Victor doesn’t know. On the one hand, Yuri would be able to breathe if he was unconscious. On the other hand, Yuri would wake up eventually and when he did Victor was worried this was just start all over again when he did.

 

               Although Yuri doesn’t seem to understand what he is saying, the other man is now leaning towards him. Victor begins to rub circles on his back, on either side of his spine. Even though, Yuri doesn’t understand him, Victor’s voice is helping. Not nearly enough, but some.

 

               Victor switches to Russian.

 

               “ **That’s is, my love. Breathe. You can do it. You are so strong, my Yuri. So brave. So beautiful. You don’t have to fight alone anymore. Please. Please, let me help you.** ”

 

               Yuri’s hands slide out of his hair and he wraps his arms around his legs so tight the tendons in his forearms are thrown into sharp relief against his tanned skin. The tears are still flowing and his body is wracked with sobs, every inhale too short, cut off with a loud wheeze before it can do Yuri any good.

 

               He lets out a different noise. A squeak. His body shudders under Victor’s palm. He bites his lip and then words come out. They are weak and in Japanese. Victor shifts closer. Please, he thinks. Please tell me. Tell me what you want me to do. I’m not going anywhere. I just need to know how to help.

 

               Please.

 

               “Bag… Victor… My bag… Please…”

 

               Victor doesn’t hesitate. He moves as quickly as his own nerves will allow, not wanting to leave Yuri’s side for longer than absolutely necessary. Yuri is shivering by the time his gets back and can place his hand back where it was.

 

               “Yuri, I have your bag. What do you need? Tell me.”

 

               It feels like it takes forever. Like Yuri is trying to draw himself out of a dark pit that exists somewhere Victor can’t follow. His chest rises and falls and his lips are still blue, his face so pale. For a moment, Victor is petrified. Afraid that Yuri is going to slip away back to that dark place before telling Victor what he need to know to help.

 

               “Bottle. Zipper pocket.”

 

               Victor removes his hand from Yuri’s back to rummage around in the bag for the zippered pocket sewn into the inner lining. He finds it quickly, pulling back the zip and digs out the small, translucent bottle he finds there. Yellow pills clatter around its bottom. Ten of them. Shit. The label is in Japanese. How is Victor supposed to know how many Yuri will need?

 

               “I need one. Just one.”

 

               “Okay.” Victor uncaps the bottle with hands that are shaking so hard he’s concerned he’s about to send the whole thing flying to the floor. He tips the bottle and lets one pill fall into his hand. Yuri is still curled up tight. He reaches out and grabs Yuri’s shoulder gently, trying to pull him away from his knees.

 

“Yuri, you have to sit straight. You’re going to choke if you try to take it curled up like that. Please? For me?”

 

               Yuri doesn’t uncurl, not completely, but he does raise his head. His face is blotchy and the tears are still flowing, though they are less violent and more steady now. He still can’t seem to get a good breath, but he holds out a hand and Victor obediently places the requested pill in his palm.

 

               There is barely a heartbeat’s pause before Yuri tosses the pill into his mouth and swallows hard.

 

               “Do you need water?” Victor can’t imagine dry swallowing a pill even that small could have felt good against Yuri’s raw throat, but Yuri shakes his head and buries his face back into his knees. Victor is just going to have to accept that decision. Has to do as Phichit asked and trust that Yuri knows what it is that he needs or doesn’t need.

 

               Has to let Yuri ride it out to the other side.

 

               Suddenly he is reminded of a night in the Swiss Alps and another man, unable to breathe through his own distress.

 

               He begins to count.

 

               “One… Two… Three… Four… Five…. Come on, Yuri.” He started to rub circles against the tense muscles of Yuri’s back, through his shirt. “Breathe in for five, out for ten. I know you can do it.”

 

               It takes some time. Victor isn’t sure how long. Couldn’t be bothered to check even if he wanted to know. It takes some time, but Yuri’s breathing eventually evens out. Color returns to his lips. The sobs peter off until they stop all together. The tears stop flowing and the muscles under Victor’s fingers no longer jump and twitch.

 

               Finally, Yuri speaks. His voice is soft, raw from crying, but it doesn’t waver.

 

               “Victor?”

 

               “I’m here.” It’s the only thing he can think to say. The only thing he thinks will matter. He has to let Yuri know that he didn’t leave, isn’t going to leave.

 

               That’s the only thing that matters.

 

               Yuri hums under his breath. His arms drop to his sides and he lets his legs slide away from his chest, pulling himself out of his self-imposed cocoon. He slumps against Victor’s side.

 

               Victor does what he wanted to do from the very beginning. He pulls Yuri into his lap, wraps both arms around him, and holds on tightly. Yuri tucks his head under Victor’s chin, his soft hair tickling Victor’s nose as he looks down.

 

               “Do you want to talk about it?”

 

               Yuri shakes his head. “Not now. My head’s fuzzy. Later.”

 

               “Okay.”

 

               They stay like that for a long time. Long enough that Victor can feel his legs start to prickle from a lack of blood flow. Eventually, Yuri’s breathing deepens and he knows the other man is asleep.

 

               Victor grabs Yuri’s glasses and places them safely on the lip of the windowsill above the bed. He then lowers them both down slowly and pulls a blanket over them.

 

               It’s a long time before he follows Yuri into slumber.

 

~

 

               They don’t talk much in the morning. The air feels like it’s charged with electricity. Like the smallest spark is going to set off another explosion. Victor waits. It kills him, but he waits. Knows he cannot push this time. Yuri knows where he is. When he is ready he will come to Victor.

 

               Yuri suggests they go find something to eat.

 

               The sun is poking out from behind the clouds as they stumbled out of the dorm. Victor takes Yuri’s hand.

 

               I’m here, his grip says. I’m waiting for you.

 

               Yuri smiles, it is a ghost of his usual one, but Victor can read the message he is sending.

 

               I know. I’ll be ready soon.

 

               They find a café. Victor orders coffee and some oatmeal topped with fresh fruit. Yuri orders a green tea, a bacon and cheese omelet, a bowl of fruit, and an English muffin. They grab their plates and head out to the patio, finding a private corner and settling in.

 

               Yuri must have noticed Victor staring at the amount of food heaped in front of him and this prompts him to finally break the ice.

 

               “I always get hungry after an episode. I burn a lot of calories freaking out, I guess.”

 

               “I can see that.” Victor allows a tinge of amusement to creep into his tone. Trying to put Yuri at ease. Trying to keep the door open for Yuri to keep going.

 

               “I’m sorry.” Yuri holds up a hand when Victor opens his mouth to automatically tell him not to be. “I know you don’t think I need to be, but if you want me to be honest, I need to say it because that is what I am. Sorry.”

 

               Victor nods. He had known that was coming. Perhaps it was best to get it out of the way so they could move on.

 

               “Do you want to talk about it now?”

 

               Yuri takes a deep breath. It’s shaky, and he runs a hand through his hair, mussing the strands he’d brushed down earlier. He adjust his glasses even though they aren’t crooked at all and picks a piece of melon out of his bowl of fruit and eats it.

 

               “I do. I just… I just don’t know where to start.”

 

               “I don’t either.” Victor admits. “I’ve never done anything like this before. I don’t know what I’m doing.”

 

               “You are doing just fine.” Yuri smiles for the second time that morning and this time it is more normal. This time there is true feeling behind it. “You could have gone running last night. I wouldn’t have blamed you. Half of me almost wished you would just so you wouldn’t have to see me like that, but you didn’t.”

 

               “Thank you.”

 

               They take a moment to eat in silence. Victor can tell Yuri is starving and he encourages the lapse in conversation. If Yuri needs to eat, then Victor wants him to do it.

 

               “Before you ask, I don’t know what triggered it. I mean, I it was a lot of things.” Yuri waves his fork through the air. “It was a lot of things and it was nothing at all. I… I can’t control it. I guess that’s kind of point of calling it a ‘panic attack’. That’s what it feels like. Like I’m being attacked from all sides and then I just shut down. Like my body doesn’t know how to deal with everything all at once so it just goes into this kind of ‘reboot’ state.”

 

               “I was scared.” Victor isn’t sure if this is the right thing to admit. Isn’t sure if this is going to be the final nail in the coffin and push Yuri away from him forever. He doesn’t know for sure, but he has to have faith. He has to trust. “You couldn’t breathe and I was just so damn scared. I didn’t know what to do. When I reached out for the first time, you pulled away and it felt like I’d been stabbed.”

 

               “Oh, Vitya… I am so sorry. I never… I never would have done that on purpose. I never want to push you away.” There was something that looked a lot like more tears welling up in the corner of Yuri’s eyes and Victor’s hand shoots out of its own accord, grabbing Yuri’s and sending the form tumbling to the stone floor with a clatter.

 

               “You didn’t. You couldn’t.” Victor struggles to find the words to say. Something that can help bridge the gap that has grown between them. Something that can mend the rift.

 

               “I _love_ you.”

 

               Yuri laughs. It starts off frantic and hollow, but then Victor is laughing, too, and it morphs into something bright and full of hope. Full of life and love and all those other things Yuri makes him feel just by existing in the same sphere as Victor does.

 

               “I love _you_.” Yuri scoots his chair around the table so they are sitting side by side and takes Victor’s other hand in his own as well. “You can’t even imagine how I felt this morning when I woke up and you where _there_. I was so convinced you were going to be gone. That now you know what I’m really like underneath it all, you wouldn’t want to be with me anymore, but you’re still _here_.”

 

               “Always.” Victor raises Yuri’s hand to his lips and kiss his knuckles. “I’m in this for the long haul. This… This thing is a part of you. I can’t make it go away. I can’t make it go away, but I can be there so you don’t have to suffer alone. Don’t ever think I would just get up and walk away, Yuri. I don’t think my heart could take it if I thought you were just wanting for that moment when you will turn around and find me gone.”

 

               “You are stuck with me, whether you like it or not.”

 

               Yuri kisses him then. Kisses him like it’s the only thing in the world he ever wants to do and Victor kisses him back just as deeply. With just as much passion because Yuri _is_ his world. Victor has been called dramatic. He’s been called melodramatic. Prone to theatrics. An absolute pain in the ass. These things are all true, but he is not being dramatic now. Not putting on a show.

 

               There is more they are going to need to talk about. More they are going to have to discuss and conversations that are going to be awkward and painful, but Victor doesn’t care. He would walk through fire for this man and he knows Yuri would do the same. It isn’t going to be easy, but they are going to pull through this and come out all the stronger for it on the other side.

 

~

 

               When they get back to the room, Yuri makes a beeline for the bed, muttering something about still being tired. Victor moves to follow until his bare foot catches against something on the floor, sending a little pill bottle skittering across the tiles.

 

               Yuri freezes in his spot on the bed and his eyes and automatically drawn to where the bottle is rocking back and forth in the small divot in the tile by one of the desks where it has landed. Victor doesn’t look at the medication. He looks at Yuri instead. Waiting for the other man to give him a cue. Ready to see which direction they are about to go.

 

               “Don’t you want to know why I don’t use it? Why I carry it around even though there’s been ten pills in there for half a year now?” Yuri still doesn’t look at Victor. Still keeps his gaze locked onto that bottle as though he is afraid it is going to jump up off the floor and come for him if he looks away. “Well, nine pills now, I guess.”

 

               “Do you want to tell me?”

 

               Yuri swallows, but nods, tearing his eyes away and back to Victor’s face.

 

               “I don’t like them. They make my head feel fuzzy. They don’t just dampen the bad feelings. They dampen the good ones, too, but I hold onto them.” Yuri shrugs. “I hold onto them because they work, even if they make me feel like shit until they fade out of my system. Sometimes I’m fine riding out an attack without any help, but sometimes I just can’t. Sometimes I feel like I’m going to break into pieces if I can’t get it all to stop.”

 

               “Taking them makes me feel weak.”

 

               Victor crosses the room. He keeps his steps even. Casual. He drops down at Yuri’s side.

 

               “Taking them, not taking them. Neither option makes you any stronger or weaker than the other.” Victor rests his head on Yuri’s shoulder and Yuri responds by wrapping and arm around his waist and pulling him in close. “They are just different options. Sometimes it makes sense to use them, and sometimes it doesn’t. In my mind, it’s as simple as that.”

 

               “I wish my mind could make it feel so simple.” Yuri presses a kiss to Victor’s temple and sighs. “I guess that’s what I have you for, now. For making the complicated stuff look easy.”

 

               “Trust me. It doesn’t feel like any of this is easy.”

 

               “Could’ve fooled me.”

 

               “Yuri, I’m not perfect. I make mistakes.” Victor pauses and rethinks that statement. “I make _a lot_ of mistakes.”

 

               Yuri nods, but doesn’t say anything further. It would seem as though he has run out of words.

 

               The atmosphere is calmer now. They are far from back to normal, but they are getting there. It’s going to take some hard work and dedication from both sides, but they are going to make it work, of that Victor is confident.

 

               They have each other now. Neither one of them has to do this alone.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Thanks so much to everyone who left kind words on the last chapter. We're finally coming out of the woods and moving forward.
> 
> There is a point in this chapter where I do write out a sentence actually in French. That sentence would be "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi". For anyone who has been living under a rock and for the past few decades, that would mean "Do you want to sleep with me?" I decided to keep it in it's original form because it makes the joke work better in the context it's used it in my humble opinion.
> 
> As always, eternal thanks and gratefulness to everyone who has left a comment, kudo, or who has found me on tumblr. ^_^

               August – The United Kingdom

 

               It takes a week for them to get back on even ground.

 

               The day after Yuri’s attack there are aftershocks. Victor hadn’t even known to look for them, but in retrospect, it made sense. After such a large earthquake, there was always bound to be a few trembles as everything resettled.

 

               Yuri napped after they ate breakfast and Victor spent the time Yuri slept reading a book by his side on the bed. He wasn’t tired, probably couldn’t have slept even if he’d tried, so he compromised. Made sure he was close and available if he was needed, but allowed Yuri to do what he needed to do.

 

               He was still too on edge to have called this time ‘peaceful’ by any stretch of the imagination, but it was nice in a way. Every so often, Victor would smooth a hand over Yuri’s hair or Yuri would shift closer in his sleep until he had his nose practically wedged into Victor’s hip bone.

 

               The first aftershock happened when Yuri awoke.

 

               Victor could instantly tell there was something wrong. Yuri usually eased into wakefulness almost agonizingly slowly. There would be stretching and yawning and burrowing back under the covers three or four times before Yuri would even open his eyes.

 

               This time his eyes snapped open with no preamble, body instantly tense and alert in a way that made Victor’s heart leap into his throat.

 

               There is a second where Victor freezes, too. The fear from the night before rising like bile in the back of his throat, but he forces himself to relax. He’s going to do more harm than good if he overreacts. Instead, he chooses to force his hand to resume stroking Yuri’s hair from where it had fallen still. He hums under his breath to let Yuri know that he is aware the other man is awake, but he doesn’t look away from the open book in his other hand, though he is not absorbing a single word on the page.

 

               The seconds stretch into minutes. Victor feels like they stretch into hours, but that isn’t right. It just feels that way.

 

               Yuri lets out a deep exhale and closes his eyes, reaching up with one hand to grab where Victor’s is still repeating those soothing motions in his hair and grabs it, holding on tight.

 

               “Yuri? Do you need something?” Victor tries to keep his tone light. He doesn’t do a half bad job of it in his opinion, but there is just enough bite to the words to belay how worried he really is and he cringes mentally. Praying he hadn’t just ruined everything.

 

               “No… I don’t think so?” Yuri doesn’t sound sure and Victor waits him out. Waiting for Yuri to make up his mind. “No. I’m fine. Just disoriented and… Weird?”

 

               Yuri drops Victor’s hand and throws both arms around Victor’s waist, rubbing his face against Victor’s hip.

 

               “Give me a minute. I’ll be fine.”

 

               “Okay.” Victor places his book down on the bed. Places his now free hand on where Yuri’s upper arm is thrown across his abdomen. Keeps stroking his hair. Waiting it out.

 

               “Sorry.” Yuri turns his head away from Victor’s body so that his words aren’t muffled into Victor’s jeans. “I just had this overwhelming feeling that when I opened my eyes you weren’t going to be there. It took me a minute to realize you were actually here and not just a figment of my imagination.”

 

               “I’m here.” Victor confirms, feeling better as a content smile crosses Yuri’s lips and his body goes limp against Victor’s. “Do you want to talk about it?”

 

               “Nothing to talk about. It’s probably just the last bit of the medication being flushed from my system. I always feel odd until it’s gone completely. Thanks. You know, for being there…”

 

               Victor nods even though he knows Yuri can’t see him from that angle.

 

               The second aftershock Victor handles less well.

 

               They had spent the day in their room, begging off hanging out with their friends under the pretense of jetlag. Victor was sure Phichit understood what was really happening, and he was sure the Thai man was running interference with the rest of the group as they weren’t disturbed for the entire afternoon. He would have to remember to thank the other man once he saw him again.

 

               Eventually Yuri started itching to get out of the room. Something about the walls feeling like they were closing in and needing to stretch his legs. Victor should have taken that as his first clue that there was something up, but he didn’t know. Aside from the abrupt way Yuri had woken up from his nap, the other man had seemed much more like his usual self. Victor had thought it was over.

 

               Not wanting to run into anyone they knew, they hurried over to food stand parked a block away from the dorm. It there that Victor makes his worst mistake.

 

               It had been an offhand comment gone wrong. Something that Victor had said without thinking as he was wont to do. The glimpse of a bookstore across the way and a murmured desire to check it out sometime in the near future.

 

               “So, go. Don’t let me hold you back.”

 

               Victor had reeled as though he’d been slapped. He’d never heard Yuri sound so _angry_. And for no reason he could easily distinguish. It stole his breath and what he said in response had been reactionary and so, so very stupid.

 

               “Yuri, calm down.”

 

               Yuri did not calm down.

 

               “Don’t tell me to calm down. I’m not a _child_.” Yuri spat the last word out as though it had burned him. As though it were filled with poison and needed to be thrust far away from him before it could drag him down all over again. “If you want to go, then go. You don’t need my permission and I don’t need you to hold my hand.”

 

               The only thing he could think was, ‘I’ve fucked up.’ But knowing it and knowing how to fix it were two completely different things and Yuri was giving him mixed signals. His tone and the fire in his eyes were telling Victor to leave. The death grip on his hand was telling him to stay. For all he knew Yuri might not actually know for himself whether he really wanted Victor to stay or go. It was an odd feeling, hearing Yuri's words say one thing while his body was begging for another.

 

               Not knowing what to do and needing a more solid cue, he turned it back around on Yuri to make the choice.

 

               “Do you want me to go?”

 

               Yuri flinched and stumbled as though Victor had physically pushed him. He wavered, the grip on Victor’s hand going slack for a moment and then growing tight again. Victor felt like he was in freefall, not knowing if he had helped his case or hurt it. Not knowing if he had done the right thing or the worst thing imaginable. Yuri’s blank expression told him nothing and so he waited while feeling like he wanted to do nothing more than scream.

 

               Yuri licked his lips, dropped his gaze to a crack in the sidewalk and fidgeted.

 

               Before he could answer, the vendor of the food cart turned around from where he had been going through an ice chest on a chair next to him and called out to them.

 

               The moment broken, they shuffled forward and ordered their meals. Yuri didn’t drop his hand, and Victor didn’t either, but he could tell whatever this was wasn’t over yet. That they were in the calm before another, hopefully smaller, squall line.

 

               The third aftershock fixed it, though.

 

               Yuri was just _off_ when they got back to the dorm. Victor had assumed, especially considering what had just happened at the food cart, that Yuri would want to retreat back to their room and hide again. Instead, Yuri had dropped Victor’s hand at last and made his way to a table in the far corner of the common area. He didn’t say anything. Hadn’t tugged Victor in that direction like he wanted him to follow. Left the door open for Victor to decide what he wanted to do.

 

               Victor followed. Of course he followed. He would follow Yuri anywhere.

 

               They begin to eat in silence. A silence which must be as oppressive for Yuri as it is for Victor because it doesn’t take long for the other man to speak and put them both out of their misery.

 

               “Do you want to go?”

 

               Victor recognizes the question for what it is. Not necessarily a continuation of their fight, but the opening to something else. It’s not something that has been said out of spite or with the intention to hurt Victor’s feelings, but it does hurt him. It hurts because Yuri isn’t asking about the bookshop any longer.

 

               He’s asking about their relationship.

 

               “No.” Victor’s answer is immediate and unflinching.

 

               Another silence. It’s Victor’s turn to ask the question.

 

               “Do you want me to go?”

 

               “No.” A pause. And then… “Yes, sometimes. Not like leave permanently. I would never, ever want that, but there are times when I like to be by myself. It’s been hard to do that lately.”

 

               “So, tell me. Tell me when you want your space. I know I can be clingy, but I can live for a few hours or a day without you if that’s what you need. I’ll be fine so long as you come back.” It was something Victor hadn’t even thought about. That just because he thrived on attention and interactions with other people, that Yuri might not be the same.

 

               That sometimes Yuri _needed_ space.

 

               And that those times were not a poor reflection on Victor or some kind of twisted hint that Yuri’s affections were fading. That it meant exactly what he said it meant. Sometimes he just needed to be alone.

 

               “I need to take a walk. Alone.” Yuri still looked hesitant. As though he were afraid Victor was going to take his request the wrong way. He had to admit it hurt a little, but not enough that Victor was willing to put his own mild discomfort over what Yuri needed.

 

               Victor couldn’t even imagine the hell that Yuri had been trapped in the night before. Didn’t think he even wanted to know. If what it took to calm Yuri and bring him back to a peaceful place was to let him go off on his own for a time, then that was what Victor was going to do. Yuri would come back and Victor would be there and they would go on.

 

               “Okay… If that’s what you need, then I’ll be here when you get back.”

 

               “Right here?” There is the hint of something teasing in Yuri’s voice. Like the real Yuri is poking through the dried out husk his anxiety had left behind.

 

               “Well, I might go get a book or something from upstairs to pass the time.” They laugh. It’s weaker than usual, but it feels good. Victor can feel their relationship slipping back away from the edge and back onto solid ground. “I’ll be here when you get back. I promise.”

 

               Yuri nods.

 

               They finish their food and Yuri gets up to leave. Victor stays seated. He doesn’t want to get up at the same time in case Yuri reads the motion wrong and thinks Victor might be trying to go with him after all. Yuri smiles, walks around to Victor’s side of the table. Bends down and kisses him softly on the lips.

 

               Then he leaves.

 

               When he comes back, hours later not that Victor counted, he looks better. Calmer and more centered. For the first time in twenty-four hours, he is smiling with his eyes. Smiling like he means it again. Victor can tell it’s not quite over yet, now that he knows to keep looking for the signs, but there is a distinct lack of that on edge aura Yuri was exuding before.

 

               The next few days are rough, but they manage it. Yuri isn’t ready to see other people yet, so they keep to themselves. Victor finds out that the administration already knows there might be times when he isn’t going to feel up to going to class and there are already arrangements for procedures to follow during those times and it is Victor that records the one Cultural Studies lecture they are scheduled to attend while Yuri is recovering.

 

               Now, it’s Victor Yuri relies on when he is feeling unbalanced and not quite ready to be out into the world. Victor is sure he is communicating with others. There are still late night Skype calls in Japanese to Mari since Yuri’s work isn’t going to be put on hold like school can be. There are times when Yuri’s phone will buzz or ping and he’ll send a response to someone, probably Phichit if Victor were to hazard a guess. In that aspect, they aren’t entirely isolated, but they are more or less alone while they work it out.

 

               A lot of conversations happen that week. Some are lighthearted and fun. Some are more serious. Finally, six days later Yuri calls Phichit and asks if he wants to grab Chris and meet them for dinner.

 

               The storm is finally coming to an end and they have come out on the other side stronger than ever.

 

~

 

               Yuri still can’t believe it. The worst has come and gone and Victor is still there.

 

               He wishes he could be more shocked with himself, that he could feel appalled there really had been a part deep inside where Yuri was convinced Victor would take one look at him at his lowest point and turn tail and run. For the first few days he stewed in his own guilt, before his rational mind got a better grip on the rest of himself and he allowed it to slip away. There had been a lot of long walks, both for himself and for Victor. Sometimes they walked alone. Sometimes they walked together, but either way, it was definitely better than staying immobile in one place like Yuri was used to.

 

               It would have been so easy to fall back on old habits. To wrap himself in a blanket nest and let the world pass him by, but Victor wouldn’t let him. At first Yuri wanted to kill him for it. Then he realized it was exactly what he needed.

 

               Victor pushed him to be the person he knew he could be. Nothing more and nothing less.

 

               The first few days were awkward as hell as they both tried to come to a compromise where they would both get what they needed. Where Victor would still feel loved and cherished, but Yuri wouldn’t feel suffocated. They still spent most of their time in their room, venturing out periodically for food and fresh air. Their friends go on day trips to nearby cities or spend nights out downtown, but they politely decline all invitations and it’s something they both want and not just something Yuri’s anxiety is forcing on them.

 

               It’s such a different feeling to have a boyfriend that isn’t just pretending to go along with what Yuri wants while his brain chemistry levels out again. That isn’t just saying what he thinks Yuri wants to hear just so he doesn’t have to deal with the hard stuff. Victor says the wrong things sometimes, yes, but he is always honest and always trying to work out a solution where they both get what they want.

 

               Victor doesn’t bow down to Yuri’s anxiety and he won’t let Yuri do it either.

 

               “To be honest, this is the fastest I’ve ever gotten back to normal after an attack of that size.” It’s been six days since Yuri’s episode and he’s starting to feel like he’s ready to go back out into the world full time again. Ready to see his friends. Ready to go back to how life usually is. “Thank you, Vitya.”

 

               “I didn’t do much.”

 

               They were sprawled out on their makeshift double bed. Victor was lying on his stomach reading yet another book, and Yuri was sitting next to him, back propped up against a pillow with his laptop in front of him while he sorted through his new emails. Work didn’t stop just because his brain decided to go haywire. He had responsibilities he had to take care of whether he wanted to or not.

 

               “You didn’t have to do anything at all.” Yuri points out. His phone buzzes against his hip and he reaches out for it, running his finger over the home key to disengage the lock and view the text message displayed there.

 

               “Phichit?” Victor looks up. It’s an odd angle and Yuri can tell it can’t be comfortable, but he seems to manage.

 

               “Yes.” Phichit had been texting Yuri once a day, every day. It was always just one message with one simple sentence ‘Status check?’. Yuri would respond with some kind of emoji and Phichit would leave it be. Phichit didn’t seem to be offended that Yuri was using Victor as his human crutch this time around. “Making sure we’re both still alive. Again.”

 

               “Mmmm.” Victor closes his book and rolls over onto his back, head still turned towards Yuri. “Chris has been bothering me about wanting to go out. If you don’t want to go anywhere yet, do you think I could meet him for dinner tomorrow? I don’t think Phichit’s been telling him much to protect your privacy, but I get the feeling he might think you’ve kidnapped me if he doesn’t get proof of life soon.”

 

               “Dinner sounds nice. I’d like to go.” Yuri hesitates. He is ready to go out. He’d probably be fine with dinner tonight if he didn’t want to be just a little bit selfish and keep Victor all to himself for a time now that he was back to where he could enjoy the company. But if Victor wanted to spend time with Chris one on one, Yuri didn’t want to impose. “If you want me to, that is. If you’d prefer to spend time with Chris on your own…”

 

               “Text Phichit. We can make it a double date.” There it was again. The way Victor doesn’t even pause. The way Victor doesn’t _need_ to pause. He just lets his emotions make his choices for him and once the decision is made, it’s done. There is no going back or second-guessing. It’s a blessing in moments like these because Yuri knows without a doubt that Victor isn’t just saying whatever he thinks Yuri will want to hear.

 

               It can be a curse, too, in the moments like the day after Yuri’s attack when Victor had told him to ‘calm down’.

 

               They’d had a long conversation about what kinds of phrasing would be taken the wrong way when Yuri was in a fragile mental state. That definitely hadn’t been a fun one, but they had toughed it out. Yuri couldn’t blame him for doing something he didn’t know was wrong, since Yuri had never bothered to tell him and Yuri actually did feel better getting everything out in the open no matter how painful it had been during the process itself.

 

               The rawness was healing. It was going to take some more time, but Yuri was now confident that they were going to make it.

 

               Yuri texts Phichit. Asks him to find a place to go on their proposed double date the next night. Phichit responds with a string of excited emojis.

 

               “I think this means we’re on for the date.” Yuri tilts his phone so that Victor can see the screen. Victor laughs.

 

               “Looks like it. Hopefully he’ll be more coherent tomorrow.”

 

               “I wouldn’t count on it.” Yuri clicks the button on the side of his phone to engage the lock and tosses it off to the side. “Be prepared. He’s going to hug you. He’s going to hug us both, but he’s going to hug you in particular. Might even hold you tight enough you can’t breathe. He does that sometimes.”

 

               “Why me?” Victor looks slightly nervous and unsure. It’s not a look he wears often and it causes a tendril of warmth to curl around Yuri’s heart at the sight. “Shouldn’t he be hugging you?”

 

               “Because you didn’t leave me.” There was no point hiding it. It was the truth and Victor deserved the truth. He’d more than earned it. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but Phichit can be a tad protective where I’m concerned.”

 

               “Did neither of you have any faith in me?” It’s phrased as a rhetorical question. It’s phrased that way, but Yuri has spent enough time as the center of Victor’s attention for the past few days to know that the other man would be pleased with an answer. Wanting an answer, but still not pushing Yuri to give one if he doesn't want to.

 

               “Phichit had a lot more of it than I did. Although I am much more convinced now.”

 

               They’d talked about this, too. A few days ago. How part of what triggered Yuri this time was his latent fear that Victor was going to disappear. That there was a part of Victor that wanted to disappear even with all the evidence to the contrary. Yuri still hadn’t been able to gather the courage to discuss the end of the year or what Victor would or wouldn’t be open to in regards of making sure they stayed together. He wasn’t sure when or if he was going to be ready for that, but Yuri didn’t feel like he needed it any longer. Victor was going to be in his life permanently one way or another and there was no point giving them both heart attacks about it.

 

               “I’m glad to hear it.” Victor did look glad. Yuri closed his laptop and placed it on where they’d scavenged for more boxes to build another impromptu nightstand. Victor was actually quite creative when it came to making their borrowed dorm room feel less like a temporary situation and more like a home.

 

               Computer safe, Yuri bent over and kissed Victor.

 

               He couldn’t believe he had ever convinced himself Victor would have been anything other than the kind and considerate and downright amazing person he’d come to know. Sure, he’d said the wrong thing from time to time while he was still trying to gain his bearings. And they’d talked at length about Victor touching him when he was in the middle of an attack without giving him warning first.

 

               It was so good to feel normal again.

 

~

 

               Dinner with Phichit and Chris started out a little awkward. That probably had a lot to do with Phichit squealing with delight and launching himself first into Yuri’s and then Victor’s arms while Chris was left standing there literally and metaphorically scratching his head.

 

               Yuri had not been wrong in his warning of Phichit’s hugs being of the air crushing variety, and it had taken a moment for Victor to get his breath back once he’d been released.

 

               Once they had gotten that out of the way, things went a bit smoothly. It was rough around the edges and Chris still seemed more than small bit confused in the beginning as he tried to find his footing in the rhythm of the conversation when he didn’t quite understand the undertones that were passing by right under his nose, but he managed. They all managed and once the food had arrived, it was more or less business as usual.

 

               “Any word on someone having a trip planned?” Yuri asks as they settled back into speaking after the arrival of their food. “We’ve been here a week. Usually that’s the point where people start getting bored enough to start roaming.”

 

               “There’s a British student, Arthur I think his name is, taking a group of people down to Wales where his family has a cottage. I don’t think we know a lot of the people he’s invited very well, though.” Phichit grabs his phone and flicks through his calendar. Victor supposes he shouldn’t be surprised that Phichit has the plans of other students loaded onto his phone for quick access. Even though Phichit was usually kept busy with their own group of friends, he was outgoing and friendly to everyone and was constantly getting asked to go places when he wasn’t already otherwise engaged. “Oh! Otabeck has a gig at a club in Ireland weekend after next. Yurio was asking me yesterday if he thought you guys might want to go if he a got a group together.”

 

               “That could be fun.” Victor perks up at the suggestion. Yes, that could be just the thing. It would get the both of them out of town. Get them back into their friend circle. “Where in Ireland?’

 

               “The gig is in Dublin, but I think they actually only want to stay there for one night and then go to Edinburgh in Scotland for a few days before coming back to London.” Chris fills in the details. “I guess that means it’s more like a trip to Scotland than anything else. I get the feeling Yurio only cares about the part where we come support Otabeck though. Doesn’t seem like he cares either way if we go the rest of the way with them.”

 

               “I think they have a thing.”

 

               “Phichit, you think everyone has a thing.” Yuri rolls his eyes and laughs and that was what it took. The world shifted back on its proper axis and Victor knew that everything was going to be okay. “It is statistically impossible for everyone on this trip to have a thing with someone else.”

 

               “You can’t prove that.” Phichit taunts back. “I was right about you and Victor having a thing.”

 

               “That’s cheating. That was too obvious.” Chris says and Victor has to say he agrees wholeheartedly.

 

               “Yeah, Yuri, I wasn’t exactly subtle about it.” Victor smiles brightly as Yuri blushes and nudges him in the ribs with his elbow. “Hey, Phichit might be onto something. He knew that he and Chris had a thing before it became a thing.”

 

               “By Chris’ rule that would be too much like cheating, too.” Yuri takes a bite of the pasta he’s ordered. Not before elbowing Victor lightly in the ribs again, though. “JJ and Isabella are dating and you didn’t predict that.”

 

               “I didn’t _not_ predict it either.”

 

               Victor has to admit Phichit has a point there. No one had predicted JJ and Isabella. Not that Victor had been paying a ton of attention but he could have sworn the Canadian was gay. Well, that’s what he got for making assumptions about people he barely knew.

 

               He says as much and Phichit grins triumphantly.

 

               “Face it, Yuri, I have a knack for knowing when people are crushing on other people.”

 

               “Victor, please don’t encourage him or we’re never going to hear the end of it.” Yuri frowns at Victor and then Phichit. “Just because you predicted that Victor and I had a crush on each other and you were self-aware enough to figure out you had a crush on Chris and that he likes looking at your ass right back doesn’t mean you are some kind of psychic love guru.”

 

               “You like looking at my ass?” That was probably not the question Chris should be asking, but Victor didn’t begrudge him for it. He still vividly remembered the first time Yuri had grabbed his own ass and he been hit by the realization that he hadn’t been imagining all those times Yuri would get a far away look on his face when Victor would bend over. It had been a momentous occasion.

 

               “Of course, I do. It’s an amazing ass. Second maybe only to Yuri’s.” Yuri squawked and reached out to slap his friend on the shoulder. To Phichit’s credit, he didn’t seem phased by the gesture. “I think everyone here can agree that Yuri has the best ass in the class.”

 

               “Hands down.” It is now Victor’s turn to be smacked on the back of the head.

 

               “Objectively speaking as a human being with eyes and an appreciation for the fine things in life, I have to agree.” Chris is too far away for Yuri to hit, but he does send him an impressive glare that the Swiss man just shrugs off. “Emotionally speaking as your boyfriend, I’m a little disappointed, Phichit.”

 

               “Trust me, it was an objective observation.” Phichit leans over and kisses Chris on the cheek as an apology. “Personally, yours is the only ass I care to be ogling.”

 

               “We are _not_ having this conversation.” Yuri has his face buried in his hands right now and Victor can see that his ears are turning red. He decides to steer the conversation back on track before Yuri dies of embarrassment.

 

               “You’re right. We were talking about Yurio and Otabeck and the thing they totally have for each other.” Phichit laughs and the whole table follows suit. Even Yuri, who had brought his face out from behind his hands now that they are not discussing the finer points of his ass.

              

               Phichit take back over again. “Or, we can talk about how Sara and Michele are still fighting about Emil, or what you guys are going to owe me when we find out that Guang Hong and Seung-Gil are dating.”

 

               “Or we could not talk about our friends behind their backs.” Yuri suggests.

 

               Victor agrees with him, more to stay on Yuri’s good side than any true desire not to gossip. It wasn’t like they were saying anything harmful and Victor knew the others talked about them behind their backs as well. Yuri didn’t hear it because Yuri didn’t listen for it and probably wouldn’t have wanted to know even if he did, but Victor was very aware of their popularity with the rest of the class. Their study group had been the most popular one since Korea and every single person in the class had shown up at some point or another, ostensibly for help with their schoolwork, though Victor was more sure it had something to with the fact that they were all fairly attractive people.

 

               They move onto planning their long weekend away then and Victor is starting to get excited again.

 

               At the beginning of the week he hadn’t known what was going to happen. Hadn’t known what to expect from the future or if there even was going to be a future to expect anything from. Now, he was able to look out beyond the next few minutes or hours and see that there was nothing to worry about at all.

 

~

 

               When they arrived in Dublin the sun wasn’t even up yet. They are staying in a hotel by the bay and they drop their bags off behind reception since they can’t check in until ten and set off to wander.

 

               There are a few coffee shops open as the sun starts peaking up over the horizon and they find a larger one and they push some tables together to accommodate the whole group. They are missing Michele and Emil, both of whom had already committed to an excursion with some people Victor doesn’t know well to tour some castles in England. Sara is there, though, and she looks more composed and enthusiastic than she has since the fight with her brother back in Italy.

 

               There is a flurry of motion as everyone orders, collects their food and drinks, and settle around the conglomeration of tables they have shoved together. Naturally, Victor and Yuri are next to each other. Phichit and Chris next to them and then Yurio and Otabeck on other side. It’s difficult to have a meaningful conversation with the far end of the table, but Victor doesn’t mind. He’s more than happy to make small talk with the five people close enough to him not to have to yell.

 

               “Why does it matter if I only know two languages? Not everyone knows three. That’s just being an overachiever.” Yurio growls out before blowing bubbles through his straw and whatever sugary concoction he was drinking. “Besides, even if I audition successfully for the touring company all I need is English. Tell them, Otabeck. You don’t need three languages to be cool.”

 

               “I do speak three languages.” Otabeck states plainly and Yurio sputters at his side, almost spitting out his drink. “English, Russian, and Kazakh. I’m passable at French, too, but I don’t count it since I’m not fluent yet. I hope to be soon.”

 

               “I… What? You didn’t… French? Really?”

 

               “They do call it the language of love, _our angry, little, Russian kitten_.” Chris smirks and winks from across the table.

 

               “What the fuck did he call me?” Yurio glares, then turns to Otabeck. “ **What the fuck did he call me?** ”

 

               “Nothing you want me to translate.” Otabeck continues to pick at the blueberry muffin on his plate.

 

               “You can’t _all_ know three languages!” Yurio turns away from his friend and back to where the four of them are now staring at him with varying levels of amusement. “Do you?”

 

               “You know I do.” Victor stirs his oatmeal to mix in the fresh berries he’d spooned on top of it.

 

               “Yuri and I do, as well.” Phichit chirps. “English, Japanese, and Thai. Though his Japanese is obviously better than mine and my Thai is better than his. I would categorize it as fluent, though.”

 

               “And I’m learning Russian. Victor is helping.” Yuri is smiling and Victor smiles in return. “And I’m trying to teach him Japanese. That part isn’t going so well.”

 

               “I still maintain it’s not because I’m bad at languages, but because my instructor is too distracting for his own good.”

 

               “I speak two languages.” Chris says. “English and French. I mean, I speak some German, but if we’re counting points for fluency, I’m not quite there yet. Zurich is tourist friendly enough that English and French get me by and I holiday at home where everyone speaks French so I’ve never had a need to polish it out.”

 

               “Maybe we should all learn French.” Phichit suggests, though Victor can’t fathom the reason why. “Chris is right, they do call it the language of love. I’ve always kind of wanted to learn, but I got about as far as ‘ _Voulez-vous coucher avec moi.’_ and figured that would get me anywhere I needed to go.”

 

               “ _Ah, my heart. Victor, is that not the most adorable thing you have ever heard?_ ” Chris grabs his chest right over his heart for emphasis even though Victor and maybe Otabeck are the only ones present who can understand what he’s saying. “ _Oh, but he is not wrong. I would take him anywhere just to hear him say that in his terrible attempt at a French accent again._ ”

 

               “ _So, tell him. In English. He’ll understand you better that way._ ” Victor laughs as Chris frowns and makes a face as though he hadn’t realized he hadn’t been speaking English. “Chris says your accent is terrible by the way.”

 

               “Victor!” Chris looks appalled for a moment before turning to Phichit, only to find the Thai man laughing hysterically and not offended at all.

 

               “He’s not wrong. My accent is terrible. To be fair, everything I know about French I learned from watching Moulin Rouge about a million times… Maybe you can be a better French tutor than Yuri is a Japanese tutor?” Phichit asks with a smile and a wink and Chris throws his arms around his boyfriend with so much enthusiasm Victor is worried they are both about to go tumbling out of their chairs.

 

               “Something tells me he is going to be just as distracting as you are to me, if not more so.” Victor mutters for Yuri’s ears only, ignoring where Yurio is making gagging noises on his other side for the time being.

 

               “If only because he is going to actively _try_ to be distracting. I’m unintentionally distracting. It’s not the same thing at all.” Yuri places a hand on Victor’s lower thigh and rubs a thumb over his knee. “Now, this? This is me _trying_ to be distracting.”

 

               “You are succeeding.” If Yuri notices the crack in Victor’s voice he doesn’t show it. Just keeps rubbing those tantalizingly slow circles against his knee and smiles. The smile he _knows_ makes Victor’s stomach flutter and his legs refuse to hold his weight. The smile that makes his whole body go weak.

 

               “ **I am never inviting any of you anywhere ever again. We are in public!**”

 

               “Ah…” Yuri removed his hand, much to Victor’s dismay, and turns to Yurio. “ **We’re sorry… We’ll be…** Shit… What’s the word? Oh! **Better**. Did I say it right, Victor?”

 

               “You said it right, my love.” Victor wraps an arm around his shoulder and kisses his temple, noting that Yurio is still too deep in shock at hearing Yuri speak in passable Russian to comment or have his usual reaction to the public display of affection. “We’ll have to have many, many more tutoring sessions to work on your own accent, though.”

 

               “I’m looking forward to it.”


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Alright, since we've got Yuri and Victor out of the woods and back on the same page... Let's bring back some of the other characters, shall we?
> 
> Thanks so much for everyone who has been supporting me this whole time... I know a while back I posited there were 13 chapters left... That... No longer seems to be the case. I'll have a better update once I'm done outlining the next few plot points I want to tackle. I should have a total chapter count within the next few updates or so.

               September – Australia

 

               “Doesn’t this feel a lot like we’re going backwards?” Yurio scuffed his shoe against the floor while they waited for their bags in the baggage claim area of the Sydney Airport. “Why would we move in the complete opposite direction around the globe than we were moving before?”

 

               “Why don’t you find the people that made the schedule and ask them?” Victor suggests. He’s only half paying attention. Keeping his eyes on the silver conveyor belt in front of him while tries to locate his own bags. “I would think you would be fine with it since it extends our time in summer weather by another month.”

 

               “I’m not complaining. I’m just saying it’s illogical.”

 

               “You’re complaining.” Yurio grunts and lashes out, catching Victor on the shin for his comment. Before he can retaliate, Yurio is walking away, middle finger held up over his head as he goes. “Ow… Shit.”

 

               “He’s in a mood.” Yuri comments, reaching out to pat Victor on the back as he bends over and rubs where his shin is now smarting from Yurio’s well-placed kick. Not for the first time, Victor thinks that if the younger man ever wants to give up ballet he could find success in some kind of sport that relies on hand-eye coordination because his aim is as impeccable as ever. Or maybe kickboxing. “Do you know what that’s about?”

 

               “Can’t say that I do.” He exhaled and straightened back up. It was hard to tell with his jeans in the way, but he was pretty sure there was going to be a bruise there later. “We’ll have to find a practice space as soon as we can. He opens up more when we’re practicing.”

 

               Yuri nods and turns back to the conveyor, reaching out to grab a blue and black bag with a poodle tag attached to the zipper. He placed it gently on the floor by his feet and turned back to watching for the rest of their bags without another word.

 

               The next bag to come around is Victor’s and after a few moments the only thing missing is a smaller rolling bag of Yuri’s. All around them Victor sees their friends and classmates sorting out their own things. Off to their left Sara and Michele are arguing quietly over a maroon duffel they are both trying to claim as their own.

 

               Victor turns back to Yuri. “I’ve started to really like sharing a room with you. Are you sure we can’t just find a hotel room for the month?”

 

               “That’s hardly cost effective.” Yuri frowned and ran his eyes over the bags as they continued to pass by, more focused on finding his missing bag than on Victor for the time being. “Not that I don’t want to… I just… I’d have to justify the expenditure with Mari and I’m not exactly sure how much of my personal life I want to discuss with my sister.”

 

               “I can pay for it.” Victor knows it’s a losing battle. Knows Yuri is far too sensible to give in and loving him for it anyways, but he felt like he had to try. Just on the off chance it might work. The old adage of ‘you never know if you don’t try’ was practically Victor’s life motto at this point. “My parents wouldn’t care about the expense. They let me do pretty much whatever I want with my allowance.”

 

               “I don’t know if I want your parents to have an inside track to our personal life either.” Yuri lets out a breath of relief as his missing bag rounds the bend and he lunges forward to grab it before it can get too far down the line. “They might not care, but I’m sure they would want an explanation for why you dropped several grand on a hotel room when you have a perfectly good dorm room they have already paid for that you can use.”

 

               “You… Are not wrong.” While Victor truly didn’t care what his parents thought about him wasting money just to shack up with his boyfriend in a foreign country, Yuri would. Yuri was still in the stage where he was trying to impress Victor’s parents and Victor was more than willing to let him. Even if it meant spending a month tossing and turning in a bed that was going to feel far too empty. “Can you blame me for trying?”

 

               Yuri laughed softly, placing a kiss on Victor’s cheek before grabbing his bags in preparation for them to go make their way towards customs.

 

               It feels as though there is an air of sadness surrounding the two of them in the vans on the way to campus. This feeling wasn’t even as intense just a month prior before Yurio had practically shoved Victor back into Yuri’s space. Maybe it had something to do with the way their relationship had changed in the wake of Yuri’s panic attack in London. Maybe it was just that they had three months of living together under their belt now instead of just two and Victor was more used to Yuri being there than he had been before.

 

               Whatever the reason, his feet and heart felt heavy as he climbed the stairs to the second floor room he was supposed to be sharing with JJ for the rest of the month. He figured that wouldn’t be so bad. JJ like to party, spend time with Isabella, and, more often than not, he was out most evenings with his guitar, perusing open mic nights. That meant he would have plenty of time alone with Yuri if he wanted it, even though Yuri would eventually have to go home for the evening.

 

               The room was empty when he got there and Victor went about unpacking as quickly as possible. The faster he could get settled, the faster he could get back to Yuri and drag him out for dinner or something. Maybe if they stayed out late enough he could wear Yuri down to agreeing to get a hotel room for tonight at least. Ease back into having to live life apart. Yes, that was a good argument. Surely Yuri would see the reasoning in that.

 

               Victor was so caught up in planning out exactly what he was going to say to convince his reluctant boyfriend to humor him that he almost didn’t hear the door open. He did, however, hear someone clear their throat quietly behind him.

 

               “Oh, JJ! I’m sorry I was just… You aren’t JJ.”

 

               It was not JJ hovering nervously in the doorway. It was Yuri.

 

               Wonderful, perfect, amazing Yuri who had all his things piled next to him.

 

               “Yuri!” Victor dropped the textbooks he had been holding and sprinted across the room, grabbing Yuri and spinning them both around. He spun them until they were breathless from laughing and Victor was getting dizzy.

 

               After he set Yuri down, he still didn’t let go. He cupped Yuri’s face in his hands and looked down at him with what must have been the most lovesick expression in the world… Which was saying something even by Victor’s standards.

 

               “Don’t take this the wrong way because I am absolutely thrilled that you are here, but… Why _are_ you here? I thought you were supposed to be with Chris this month.”

 

               Yuri lifted his head and gave Victor a quick kiss before explaining. “You should know Chris better by now. That and JJ owed me a favor. They agreed to room together so that we don’t have to stay apart... We might owe Chris in the future, though, since I didn’t have a favor to call in for his end of the bargain.”

 

               “Whatever we owe, I’ll pay it one thousand times over.” Yuri groaned and Victor couldn’t blame him for it. That had been a bit more over the top that what Yuri usually tolerated. “Sorry. You know how I get when I’m excited.”

 

               “I know, I know.” Yuri kissed him again and Victor kissed back this time. Holding them both in place, completely forgetting about the luggage in the doorway or the fact that Yuri hadn’t shut the door behind him.

 

               Well, they had forgotten until there was the sound of angry Russian coming from that direction.

 

               “ **Oh, gross! Can’t you at least shut the fucking door before you do that shit?** ” Victor and Yuri broke apart. Victor reluctantly and Yuri with an embarrassment so intense Victor wouldn’t have been surprised if that neon blush didn’t extend all the way down to the bottoms of his feet. “ **You’re a bad influence on him, Victor. He never did shit like that before you brainwashed him.** ”

 

               “Come now, Yurio. Speak English. Yuri’s Russian is still rudimentary and you are always the one going on about people speaking where you can understand.” Victor knew it wasn’t wise to push Yurio when he’d already proven to be in a bad mood, but he was feeling a bit disoriented from the events a few moments prior and Yurio had interrupted something he had been enjoying very much. “Do you actually need one or both of us for something, or are you just dropping in to lodge another complaint?”

 

               “Victor.” Yuri’s tone held that hint of warning it would get when he felt Victor was being overly rude to someone, although Victor did note that Yuri didn’t look too happy about the interruption either. He was just naturally more polite than Victor could ever hope to be. “Is everything okay, Yurio?”

 

               “Everything’s fucking fine.” Yurio didn’t look like everything was fine, and Victor’s sudden feeling of unease intensified as the teen shuffled into the room and plopped himself down on top of one of the desks, arms folded across his chest and lips twisted into a deeper snarl than they had been in months. “I just needed to get away from my room for a bit and Otabeck is busy. It doesn’t help that I’m stuck with Guang Hong this time. He’s so quiet it creeps me out sometimes.”

 

               “If you want to hang out while we get settled we can go grab something to eat.” Yuri moved back to his pile of bags and drug them inside, closing the door behind him. “You were right earlier. Spending over twenty-four hours traveling backwards was probably not the best idea the administration has ever had and airport food is never good enough. I know I’m starving.”

 

               Yurio grunts and nods, but doesn’t say anything further.

 

               Victor now knew enough about Yurio to know that this kind of behavior meant everything was not fine at all, but he exchanged a quick look with Yuri and decided not to push. When Yurio was ready, if Yurio ever got ready, he would let them know. Until then, all they had to do was act like normal and let him come to them if that was what he wanted.

 

               To his surprise, when it came time to move furniture around in their usual arrangement, Yurio assisted with only the bare minimum of complaining. He didn’t even say that Victor and Yuri were gross for wanting to make their own double bed even once.

 

               Yes, there was definitely something wrong.

 

~

 

               The first restraint they stumbled upon was a pizza place. After a brief moment of discuss the three of them agreed that their hunger outweighed any desire to fine other options and they ordered a large pizza to share, choosing to find a table on the outdoor, covered patio rather than eating inside the cramped interior.

 

               They discussed the weather and how their all their classes would be restarting in the next few days. They talked about how Victor wanted to go to the beach as soon as possible and about how Yuri’s work was going. It was when the conversation turned to where they might be able to find a dance studio on campus that would let them practice that Yurio finally broke.

 

               “My parents want me to come home.” Yurio wouldn’t meet either of their eyes, instead choosing to stare down at his plate and pick some cheese off his pizza with greasy fingers. “They think I’m still not taking school seriously enough and that I need to come back so they can keep a better eye on me.”

 

               Victor didn’t know what to say. Luckily, Yuri did.

 

               “They’re wrong.” Yuri’s tone was gentle but firm. Yurio’s gaze snapped up from his mangled slice and he looked over with widen eyes that were more than a little hopeful. “They’re wrong for all of it, and you know it. Your grades are fine, but that’s not the point. You have talent and you have a desire to put that talent to use. If they can’t see that, then they are wrong.”

 

               “You don’t have to say things like that.” Yurio was shuffling uncomfortably in his seat.

 

               “He wouldn’t have said it if it wasn’t true.” Victor pointed out calmly. Trying to portray an air of ease. As though they were still talking about the weather. “I’m not going to pretend to understand exactly what is going on with your parents, but if they want you to hide away that part of you, then Yuri is right. They are wrong.”

 

               “It doesn’t matter if they are wrong or not. They are the ones that have all the money.” Now Yurio was getting angry, but it was a different kind of anger than what he usually displayed. This felt more raw, more open, and more painful. “My grandfather gives me what he can, but he doesn’t have much. My father pushed him out of the company years ago and has him on tight leash. It’s fucking disgusting the way they treat him.”

 

               “Can you put them off until the end of the year?” Yuri asks. “Your grades were good last semester. If you can convince them to let you finish the program, I’ll bet we can figure something out for the long term.”

 

               “My grades were good last semester because I was taking two dance electives and base level English classes.” Yurio grabbed a napkin and began wiping off his hands on it violently. “That’s two semesters in a row I took bullshit classes that didn’t require any effort. My parents are negligent, not dumb.”

 

               “Is it too late to change your enrollment for this semester?” Yuri continues to press. Victor isn’t quite sure where he’s going with this, but his boyfriend seems to be putting together some kind of plan. Yurio simply shrugs in response. “Go meet with one of the counselors. Today if you can. Take some higher difficulty classes. Preferably math related ones. I’m good at math and they can’t prove you aren’t the person on the other side of the screen. I’ll help you pass them and throw your parents off the scent.”

 

               “Don’t fucking do something like that for me.” Yurio took his balled up napkin and launched it in Yuri’s general direction. Either his usually good aim was off or he missed on purpose because the napkin flew past Yuri’s face and landed on the concrete floor behind him. Victor was pretty sure he’d missed on purpose. “I don’t even know why I told you idiots any of this. I don’t need or want your help. I guess… I guess I just wanted you to know why I was gone once I do leave.”

 

               “You aren’t going anywhere.” Victor was now on the receiving end of one of Yurio’s more potent glares. He tried not to let it stop him. “Keep your dance class since I’m suspecting we’re going to need a reason to keep in touch with Lilia and then take a math class, French, some sort of complicated computer science class, and then something business related. That should be a curriculum difficult enough to keep them off your back and it would spread out the work. I can help you with French and we can convince Chris to take on some of the workload there as well if you’ll let him. Yuri can do the math and get Phichit to help with the business class, and I know Otabeck would be thrilled to assist with the computer science elective. Would that be enough for them to leave you alone for the rest of the year?”

 

               “It doesn’t matter if it would or wouldn’t be because it’s not happening. I’m not putting my problems on any of you, and I’m not fucking talking to Otabeck about any of this.” Yurio pulled his hood over his head and slumped down into his chair. “I shouldn’t have told you. I wouldn’t have if I knew you were going to freak out about it so much.”

 

               “We’re glad you did tell us.” Yuri pulled his glasses off, wiped them off on the bottom of his shirt and then replaced them all while Yurio watched with something Victor wanted to categorize as hope in his green eyes. “Now, are you going to keep throwing a fit, or can we cut to the part where you let us help you?”

 

               Nobody said anything for a long minute. Yuri went back to eating, acting as though he didn’t care what Yurio decided to do. Victor took his cue and did the same. Grabbing his phone from out of his pocket and flicking through his social media as though there was nothing wrong at all.

 

               Finally, after pulling the hood around his head so tight that Victor could only see the tip of his nose, Yurio responded.

 

               “Okay, let’s say we do all this and my parents agree to let me stay… What are we going to do then? At the end of the year I’ll be back in St. Petersburg where they can find me and see what I’m really up to.” Yurio’s voice was muffled from inside his hood, but it was clear enough to be understood. “I can’t pretend to be the good son forever. What’s four more months of dancing if it’s going to be taken away from me in the end anyway?”

 

               “It’s four more months of your friends helping you figure out what that next step needs to be.” Victor points out. And then, even though he knows his offer is not going to be well-received, he goes a step further. “And if we don’t figure something out before the end of the year, you can stay with me until we find something more permanent. It’s a one bedroom flat, but I have a pull out couch and we’ll both be busy between your dance practice and my job so we could make it work. I know it’s an eight hour commute to Moscow, but there are ballet companies in St. Petersburg that would love to have you while you sort something out to return to the Bolshoi.”

 

               “I’m not living with you like some kind of fucking charity case!” Yurio’s hood flipped back and he was growling, eyes flashing and teeth clenched as he did his best to glare Victor out of existence. “I’ve sorted it out on my own in the past. I can do it again.”

 

               “We’re not saying you can’t figure it out on your own.” Yuri is now taking the full brunt of Yurio’s glare. For what it worth, he’s only trembling slightly under the intense scrutiny. Victor’s proud of his resolve. “We’re saying you don’t have to. We’re your friends whether you wanted us to be or not. You came to us with a problem. You don’t have to ask us to help for us to want to offer it.”

 

               “Fine! But I’m not moving in with Victor. I’d rather kill myself.”

 

               “It might not come to that. I just wanted you to know the offer was there if it does.” Victor shrugs. “You’re basically family now, whether you want to be or not.”

 

               “We’re not adopting him, Victor.” Well, it looked like Yuri was starting to catch on to when Victor was about to purposefully suggest outlandish things. He was going to have to get better at surprising him or else that wouldn’t be any fun.

 

               “First of all, I’m a fucking adult. Last I checked, you can’t adopt an adult. Second of all, even if I wasn’t I would never let you imbeciles adopt me.” Yurio flipped the hood back over his head and went back into full sulk mode. “But I will let you do my schoolwork for me if you are so set on being fucking stupid about it.”

 

               “That’s a start.” Victor knew he was beaming, but he couldn’t help it. He had never though it would matter this much to have someone like Yurio not only surreptitiously come to him for help, but also to accept it when it was offered. Granted, he was sure a lot of that had to do with Yuri and how it was almost impossible to tell Yuri ‘no’ when he offered to be selfless.

 

               And if he was just the tiniest bit happy about how Yuri had said ‘we’ when discussing the hypothetical situation of adopting Yurio… Well, that was just going to be his little secret.

 

~

 

               “I’ve already told you, no one is adopting Yurio.” Yuri didn’t know if he wanted to be proud of Victor for wanting to help, or exasperated by him continuing to float the least helpful option. “Even if he would agree, and he won’t, you wouldn’t know the first thing to do with an angsty teenager.”

 

               “He’ll be twenty in March. He won’t technically be a teenager for much longer.” Victor was quick to point out. “Although I’m not sure how long it’s going to take for that angst to fade away. He’s pretty bitter about everything. Rightfully so, but still…”

 

               “I think you should let Victor adopt him.” Phichit piped in from his spot across the table. They had met Chris and Phichit in the library the next morning in order to discuss with them what had happened the day before while Yurio talked to Otabeck and then went to speak to one of the advisors on campus to try and sort out his new schedule. Yurio hadn’t wanted to, but he had eventually relented when Yuri had reminded him that Chris was also very good at French and Phichit had a business background and spreading the work around would give them a higher chance of succeeding in their plan. “I could be good for the both of them. Might even teach Victor how to handle having responsibilities.”

 

               “Or they could kill each other. That could be fun to watch, too.” Chris was quick to contribute his own two cents to the conversation and Yuri could feel some of his patience slipping away. This was starting to become the exact opposite of productive.

 

               “No one is either adopting or killing anyone else.” Yuri uses his best stern voice. The voice that always causes Victor to groan and either bury his head in Yuri’s shoulder or in his own arms on the table. Whichever is nearest. This time it’s the table as Yuri has purposefully scooted just too far away to be a viable target. “We’re supposed to have a Skype session with Lilia in three days. Before we make any life changing decisions, let’s wait and see what she has to say about it.”

 

               “Why do you have to be so smart all of the time?” Victor asks as he turns his head in his arms so the words come out clear. Yuri isn’t entirely sure what he means. Yuri has made more than his fair share of horrible decisions after all, but he doesn’t bother to correct his boyfriend. It’s not like Victor would have listened to him even if he tried.

 

               “My theory is that it’s a curse.” Phichit is typing away idly at his computer and Yuri sends him a glare for his efforts. “Don’t look at me like that. You know it’s true. You have this compulsion to help everyone and you have an odd talent for knowing just how to do it. Some people would call it a blessing. I’m pretty sure it’s a curse, but that’s just my opinion.”

 

               “I’m going to call it a blessing. If it weren’t for Yuri’s desire to help people in need, I might never have met him and that would have been a tragedy.” Victor says this plainly, as though it were a simple fact of life. Hell, for him maybe it was.

 

               “That is patently untrue.” Yuri knows he looks and sounds like he’s sulking, and maybe he is. He’s sure most people would take what his friends were implying as a compliment, but Yuri definitely isn’t most people. “I would have met you the next evening at the introductory party. You’re just being dramatic again.”

 

               “And I’m going to continue to be until you admit that you saved my life that one time.” Yuri is very sure Victor knows he is never going to admit that by now. Knowing doesn’t really seem to matter, though. “Come on, Yuri… Say it. Just once. For me.”

 

               “He’s not going to say it.” Why was it that Chris could figure it out while Victor and Phichit remained stubbornly entrenched in the strange alternate reality where Yuri could ever have actually saved Victor from anything? He then says something in French that causes Victor to laugh and say something back in the same language.

 

               “[I can’t tell if I love it or hate it when they do that.]” Phichit grumbles as he looks up from his laptop to exchange an exasperated glance with Yuri. “[I wasn’t lying before. I’m going to learn French and I’m not going to tell anyone that I did and then I’ll be able to know exactly what they are talking about behind our backs.]”

 

               “[Does it count as talking about us behind our backs if they are technically doing it to our fronts?]” Yuri asks, ignoring the whine coming from Victor as he had now realized Yuri and Phichit are speaking in Japanese on purpose. “[And you only like it because you think Chris sounds sexy when he speaks French.]”

 

               “[Says the person who blushes whenever Victor does the same. Not mention that far away look you get when he switches to Russian.]”

 

               Yuri does not deign to answer that.

 

               “Hey, you’re talking about us! I heard our names!” Victor pokes out his bottom lip in a pout that Yuri finds practically irresistible. “What are you saying?”

 

               “What are _you_ saying?” Yuri shoots back. It’s playful, though. He doesn’t really believe Victor would say anything derogatory about him behind his back. Which is weird when he thinks about it. Usually his anxiety has him on high alert when he knows someone is saying something about him and has him half-convinced it’s bad before the words can even really come out of the other person’s mouth whether there is reason to believe it or not. With Victor it’s different, though. When it’s Victor he doesn’t ever think that.

 

               “Just waxing philosophic about how amazing you are.” Victor smiles and Yuri does not doubt that for a second. “So what were you saying?”

 

               “He said he thinks it’s sexy when you speak French.” Yuri kicks out under the table and connects with what he thinks is Phichit’s ankle. The Thai man winces and shuffles his chair backwards out of reach of a second attack and plows on. “He likes it even better when you speak Russian, though.”

 

               “Phichit! Not helping.” Yuri is actually sure Phichit is completely convinced he is helping, though, and is not about to stop not matter how much Yuri begs or kicks him.

 

               Victor seems to agree with Yuri’s line of thinking, although Yuri isn’t sure whether he’s fine with it or not.

 

               “Oh, really?” Victor raises an eyebrow in his direction and Yuri gets the sinking feeling that he is going to pay for Phichit’s big mouth later. “Do you know what helps people learn another language faster, Yuri?”

 

               “No, but I have the feeling I’m about to find out.”

 

               “Immersion.”

 

               For once Yuri couldn’t find the words to argue. This was either the best or worst idea Victor had suggested in the entire time Yuri had known him.

 

               Only time would tell which one it was going to turn out to be.

 

~

 

               Victor had grown up around the water. St. Petersburg was located on the Baltic Sea and the Neva River was about six kilometers from his flat. He was used to hearing gulls in the morning and evening and smelling the scent of brine coming up off the ocean when he would go for runs along the waterfront.

 

               This was different, though. Russia was often cold and grey, the beaches deserted except for the most dedicated of wanderers for a good part of the year, and even in the summer Victor never seemed to be able to find the time to locate a patch of warm sand and lay out. Here, the beaches were golden and the water warm. The sun beat down onto their bare skin if they didn’t hide underneath the shade of an umbrella and the freckles across the bridge of his nose that had started showing up in Barcelona, had multiplied.

 

               Victor was fairly convinced that he was in heaven.

 

               “You’re going to get burn if you stay out there for much longer.”

 

               There also wasn’t Yuri Katsuki in Russia. At least, not yet.

 

               Victor rolled over onto his stomach and propped himself up on his elbows, looking over at where Yuri was sitting on a low beach chair under the shade of the umbrellas they had rented that morning with a tablet on his lap and a text book resting on the towel beside him. He grinned and Yuri returned it with a wide smile of his own.

 

               “If you come over here, I’ll put some more sunblock on you.”

 

               Yuri did not have to extend that offer twice.

 

               He left Chris and Phichit still sunning on their own towels next to his now abandoned one and hurried back over to his boyfriend’s side. Yuri laughed and put his tablet back into his messenger back, grabbed his text book in order to do the same with it, and pulled out the sunblock. Victor turned around and practically purred as Yuri rubbed the cool lotion into the warms skin of his back.

 

               “It’s getting close to lunchtime, isn’t it?” Victor asked as Yuri continued to work the lotion into his back slowly, but surely. “Do you think there’s a way to get take away delivered right here.”

 

               “I packed sandwiches, chips, and drinks.” Of course, he had. Yuri always knew what Victor would need or want even before Victor could think to ask for it. Always knew what any of them would want or need.

 

               “Did I hear sandwiches?” Phichit and Chris must have walked over while Victor’s eyes had been closed for a brief moment when Yuri had focused on undoing a knot in the muscle just under his right shoulder blade as they were now sitting in their own low beach chairs. Phichit toss the towel he’d been using to wipe the sweat from the back of his neck to start rummaging around in the cooler Yuri had placed behind his chair when they’d first arrived at the beach that morning and began to pull out baggies that contained labeled sandwiches. “You are such a mom friend and I absolutely love it.”

 

               “A mom friend?” Yuri sounded as though he were on the edge of being amused or offended and he couldn’t quite figure out exactly which he should be. Victor, sensing his impromptu massage was over with the arrival of their friends and prying eyes picked himself up and flopped into the empty chair next to his boyfriend, accepting the ham and cheese sandwich Phichit was handing him. “What do you mean by that?”

 

               “I mean that you are always prepared for everything. Like a mom.” Phichit shrugged and looked at Yuri as though his meaning should have been obvious. “Like how when you’re little your mom always has whatever you need. Tissues, wipes, snacks, medicine and band-aids… You know, like moms do. You are the friend that has what we need at all times, ergo, you are the mom friend.”

 

               “I can’t decide if I want to be offended by that or not…” Yuri chews on his bottom lip as he send Phichit a look still filled with uneasy suspicion. “Is it really such a weird thing for me to always be prepared.”

 

               “I don’t think so.” Victor is quick to reassure Yuri. If he’s reading the situation right, which it definitely is possible he’s not since he’s still inexperienced when it comes to sorting out when Yuri needs reassurance and when Yuri would prefer him to leave it alone, this is one of those times when he wants someone to let him know that his compulsion is perfectly normal. “You’ve saved our asses more times than we can count. We probably would still be lost in the middle of Beijing if you hadn’t had that paper map tucked into your bag.”

 

               “Literally no one could have known there would be a brown out that caused the cell towers to go down and cause our phones to turn into expensive bricks.” Chris said, poking Phichit in the shoulder and pointing towards where a bottle of soda was half sticking out of the ice and gesturing for the other man to hand it to him. “Victor’s right. If you hadn’t been there, we might still be in China.”

 

               “See? The mom friend is the best friend to have around!” Phichit is all bright smiles and easy cheer as he complies with Chris’ silent request and hands over the chilled soda.

 

               “You would not still be in China. The cell towers were back up in three hours and we were two weeks away from moving onto the next country anyway.” Yuri frowned, but dug through the cooler and pulled out a water for himself and Victor.

 

               “One of these days you aren’t going to be able to logic your way out of acknowledging that you saved our lives.” Victor warned as he accepted his water bottle and twisted the cap off, taking a long drag from it before recapping it and placing it in the sand at his side.

 

               They spend a moment enjoying the warm weather and the sounds of families, groups of teens and college students, and young couples that are surrounding them. The beach isn’t as crowded on a Wednesday afternoon as it would be on a weekend, but there are still a fair amount of people around and it creates the pleasant buzz of noise in the background.

 

               “Hey, Yuri, how would you feel about a cozy, little place on the beach? Somewhere warm, of course.” It’s an idle questions and Victor doesn’t even turn to look at his boyfriend as he asks it, choosing to look at Yuri out of the corner of his eye before taking a bite of his sandwich.

 

               “I… What? The beach? This beach?” Yuri is stumbling over his word in that way he does when Victor has managed to surprise him again. “I don’t think I understand what you’re taking about.”

 

               “A house. On the beach. Any beach.” Victor clarifies. “I’m starting to become quite fond of being able to come out to a place like this every day. It’s calming. Don’t you think?”

 

               “I… Yes?” Victor now can tell Yuri understands exactly what he’s asking, but if he wants to play hard to get, that’s fine. Victor was fairly confident he wasn’t going to get a serious answer with Phichit and Chris nearby even if they do seem to be wrapped up in their own private conversation at this point and aren’t really paying them any attention. “Yes, I like the beach. It’s… Nice?”

 

               “Yes. Yes, it is.” Victor allows the content feeling he’s been flirting with for most of the morning roll over him in waves. He closes his eyes and tilts his head back.

 

               It’s not that he doesn’t notice Yuri didn’t give him a real answer. To be fair to him, Victor hadn’t really asked him a real question. Victor does notice, however, that in not giving an answer Yuri also didn’t say ‘no’. Not that Victor really thinks they are going to buy a cottage on the beach in some topical location. They both have their personal and professional responsibilities, but it nice to know that the suggestion of there being a future where they could consider finding a place to be _their_ home is not something that Yuri is going to dismiss off hand.

 

               That it could be a sign that Victor isn’t the only one thinking of what is going to come next. Of what their next step down the road could be.

 

               That there is now a future Yuri can see that includes the both of them.

 

               Victor can’t wait for the day when that future arrives to see exactly what it is going to bring.


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> In order to make up for a slightly delayed chapter due to my brain's need to pump out an almost 12K Your Name AU last night... How about an amusement park date?
> 
> Thanks to everyone who has been following this story. I love you!

               September – Australia

 

               Their lives fall into a routine.

 

               In the mornings, Victor wakes Yuri early. Dragging the other man out of bed and on a jog through Sydney. They go a different route each day, trying to see as much of the city as they can before their time here comes to an end. They jog in silence for the most part, earbuds playing music in their ears as their feet pound against the pavement. The silence is companionable.

 

               Once they have completed their run, they will get breakfast. Usually fruit or smoothies these days. Sometimes either Victor or Yuri will splurge a little and buy a sweet pastry or something with empty calories. They’ll have a cup of coffee or a latte and then they will go back to the dorm to shower and change.

 

               They have their in person lecture on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. They’ll sit at the back, with their friends and Yuri will take intricate and detailed notes for the others to use. Victor tries to help but he typically ends up doing more harm than good as he can’t understand Yuri’s shorthand.

 

               If they don’t have class, they meet on the beach after they shower and change. If they do have class they grab lunch with their study group and end up on the beach anyway.

 

               Victor likes this much better than being in a quiet library. He enjoys the sun on his face, the background noise of other people enjoying the warm days. He finds that he concentrates better when he is not hunched over a desk.

 

               Sometimes they will eat packed lunches on the beach. Sometimes they will gather their things up and seek out food somewhere along the seawall. They try not to go to the same place twice, but there are a few favorites they find themselves drawn back to as the days drag on.

 

               In the afternoons, Yuri, Victor, and Yurio will catch a cab and drive to a dance studio they found downtown. They will work for hours. Until it looks like they are all going to collapse under the strain, but Yurio doesn’t complain for once. They don’t have much time if they are going to make it him ready for the auditions that are waiting for him back in Russia.

 

               Some evenings Victor can convince Yuri to come back with him to the beach. Other evenings they are too tired for that. They’re all busy, but Yuri is the busiest of all. He has his own classes, the math and business course he is taking for Yurio. He still has his own work, too. Victor is worried Yuri is going to push his body to the limit again. It going to end up in the hospital again because he refuses to ask for help.

 

               It’s so hard to trust sometimes. To let Yuri tell him when he’s reached his limits and not try to make the decision for him, but he does his best, and Yuri is tired, but does not fall ill.

 

               The second weekend they are there, Victor convinces Yuri to spend the weekend with him. From Friday evening through Sunday evening. No one else and no distractions.

 

               “There is no reason you need to bring your tablet with you. Anything you would need to look up, you can look up on your phone.” Victor gently pried the offending object out of his boyfriend’s hands and placed it on the desk. “And, because I know you are about to argue, if for some reason the battery runs out on both of our phones, and if we somehow manage to use all the charge on both of your high capacity external batteries, simply bringing a charger will be more than enough. There’s going to be electricity where we’re going. I promise.”

 

               “What if I just want it to have it?” Yuri asks and he’s pouting. Victor smiles and pecks his boyfriend on the cheek, grabbing the tablet from where he had just put it on the desk and dancing out of reach as Yuri went to lunge for it as soon as he thought Victor’s full attention was back on him. “Vitya… Please?”

 

               “No. It’s for your own good. I can’t block your emails from your phone, but I can make sure you have a smaller screen to work with. I know how much small screens annoy you.”

 

               “You annoy me.” There is a smile trying to crack through Yuri’s pout causing Victor not to take that statement seriously at all.

 

               “Yes, but I’m definitely more fun to cuddle with.” Victor slipped the table into the drawer on the desk and slid it shut. He is grinning as he turns and rests his weight against the drawer, arms crossed over his chest and eyebrow cocked. Daring Yuri to try and get it again.

 

               Yuri doesn’t take the bait.

 

               “I don’t know about that…” Oh, no. Victor swallows hard against the sudden lump in his throat. Yuri, smirks. Drops down onto the bed. Leans back and rests his hands on the bed behind him. Tips his head down and looks up at Victor from over the blue frames of his glasses. “You might have to remind me…”

 

               Yuri didn’t take the bait, but Victor? Victor is very, very weak for Yuri Katsuki. And _damn it_ if the other man doesn’t know it.

 

               He’s saved by the alarm on his phone.

 

               “Oh, look at that!” Yuri tilts his head back and laughs as Victor scrambles to pull his phone out of his pocket. He can feel his face burning red. He’s going to get Yuri back for this. Later. _After_ he makes sure Yuri spends the day relaxing. “We’re going to miss our bus if we don’t hurry!”

 

               “Alright, alright.” Yuri hops gracefully to his feet, grabbing his messenger bag and slinging the strap over his head to rest across his chest. Grabbing the handle to his wheeled overnight bag and dragging it behind him. “Well? You coming?’

 

               Yuri turns and walks out the door, his hips having just a bit more sway than they usually do.

 

               Yes, Victor is definitely going to have to get Yuri back for this, and soon. Before Yuri gives him a heart attack.

 

~

 

               “You didn’t say we were taking a plane. Do I need my passport?” Yuri is fidgeting and shuffling on the sidewalk in front of the airport. His previous confidence had drained out of him as soon as he saw the first stop on their journey.

 

               “I think we both know you had your passport tucked into your wallet already, but, no, you don’t need your passport. We aren’t leaving Australia.” Victor wants this weekend to be a surprise, but he knows enough about Yuri now to know when to make concessions. Knows when Yuri needs to be given some piece of the puzzle to quiet his racing mind. “I wanted to take a car, but I don’t have an international driver’s license and public transport is like a sixteen hour trip. So, we’re taking a plane. Cuts travel time down to an hour and a half.”

 

               “Vitya, you are spending too much money on me again…”

 

               “I thought you might say that, so I bribed Phichit to give me your sister’s number. We’re splitting this trip 50/50.” Victor placed a hand on Yuri’s back into order to continue to guide him through the terminal as he tried to think through Victor’s statement. “She was excited to hear you wanted to take some time off. That’s part of what this trip is supposed to be about, right?”

 

               “I guess…” Yuri didn’t sound completely convinced. “I wish I could say I can’t believe Mari would assist with setting me up like this, but that would be a lie. She most certainly would.”

 

               “Only because she cares about you.” The muscles at the base of Yuri’s spine are relaxing under Victor’s hand. Just as Victor has learned to trust Yuri to come to him when he needs help, Yuri has learned to trust Victor in return. To understand that Victor only wants to make him happy. “We both care about you.”

 

               “I know, I know.” There is no venom to Yuri’s words and Victor knows he is out of the doghouse for now. “Can you tell me the city we’re going to, at least?”

 

               “The plane is taking us to Brisbane.”

 

               “We’re not staying in Brisbane, are we?” Yuri asks.

 

               “I can neither confirm nor deny that Brisbane is our final destination.” Victor teases. Yuri rolls his eyes, but the questions stop.

 

               The plane ride is spent going over plans for when they get back. It’s another compromise. Victor doesn’t want to give away too much about his plans so talking about the weekend is not going to work, and he knows Yuri will feel better for taking three days off if he knows there is a solid plan waiting for him once they get back.

 

               Once they make it to Brisbane, Victor hails and cab and he spends the drive from the airport to the hotel dodging Yuri’s questions.

 

               “I’m starting to think you have an unhealthy fixation on water.” Yuri remarks as they stand on the sidewalk with their bags in front of the hotel where Victor has made reservations. There is a river that cuts through the city, and Victor has chosen this place because they have a suite with a balcony that gives them a wonderful view of the river. “Should I be concerned that you are actually part merman?”

 

               “Ah, Yuri, if I were to give up all my secrets, how else am I going to manage to keep surprising you?” Victor laughs and they go through the motions of checking in and settling in for the night.

 

               “So, we _are_ staying in Brisbane.” Yuri states idly as he stands in the bathroom at the sink. The door has been left ajar and the taps are running. Yuri cupping his hands under the flow and splashing water onto his face.

 

               “We are sleeping in Brisbane.” Victor concedes that point. It’s not like he can hide that point on their itinerary any longer. Yuri squeezes some face wash on his hands and sets about washing off his face. Victor will take his turn next. The flight might have been short, but there was always this strange feeling on his skin after he’d been in a plane. The dry air feeling like it sucked all the moisture from him. “I have plans tomorrow that are not technically in the city, but I do have reservations on the hotel patio for dinner tonight.”

 

               Yuri finishes washing his face and dries off on a fluffy, white towel. He moves out of the way so Victor can do the same. Not complaining as Victor reaches out to use his face wash instead of rummaging through their luggage for his own.

 

               “It’s barely noon.” Yuri points out, shuffling out of the bathroom in order to leave more space for Victor to work with. “Did you have plans to keep us occupied until dinner time.”

 

               “Nothing concrete.” Victor admits, closing his eyes and savoring the feeling of cool water on his cheeks. The day had been hot and the cab lacked decent air conditioning. “Why? Did you have any ideas?”

 

                “Nothing concrete.” Yuri echoes Victor’s words, but there is something in his voice that catches Victor’s attention.

 

               They end up almost being late to dinner.

 

~

 

               “Vitya, it’s too early.” Yuri grumbled and tried to roll back over into the pillow. Victor felt his heart warm at the sight of Yuri burying his nose into the softness of the pillow and away from the light from the lamp of the bedside table. “Can’t whatever you have planned wait for a decent hour?”

 

               “Maybe.” Victor pulls the pillow out from under Yuri’s head, chuckling as Yuri grunts and pulls the covers up over his head instead. “ **Come on, my love. We have much to do today. Time to rise and shine**!”

 

               “It is too early for Russian, too.” Yuri squawks as Victor pulls the covers off of him as well, tossing them onto the ground so Yuri can’t reach to pull them back over his head. “Vitya! Give those back!”

 

               “ **It’s too early for English. If you want them back, ask for them. In Russian.** ”

 

               Yuri rolls over onto his back with a loud groan. He runs a hand through his hair and licks his lips. Victor can’t help but stare, glad for the moment that Yuri is too tired and distracted to notice that Victor is openly staring at where his bare torso meets the waistband of the dark green pajama bottoms he’s wearing.

 

               “ **Fuck**.”

 

               “You’ve been taking lessons from Yurio behind my back again, haven’t you?”

 

               “Maybe.” Yuri sighs, rubbing his eyes as he sits up at long last. “Where are we going?”

 

               “The sooner you get ready, the sooner you’ll find out.” Victor winks and Yuri sends him a sour look. Well, Victor supposes it’s meant to be a sour look. All it does is serves to make Yuri look even more unfairly adorable than usual.

 

               There is a loud knock on the door and Victor bounces off the bed, grabbing his wallet from off the table as he goes. He can hear the sounds of Yuri shuffling around the room behind him as he accepts a tray of breakfast and tips the hotel employee that had brought it. He hums a random tune as he pauses so that Yuri can walk past him and into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him as he goes, and he carries the tray out to the balcony.

 

               The sun is still making its way up over the horizon. It casts golden light across the world and Victor watches the breeze blow whitecaps across the surface of the river. As soon as he finishes setting up their breakfast, he sits back and closes his eyes, taking a moment to appreciate the feeling of content that has settled into his very bones.

 

               “If you don’t watch it, I’m going to get used to you setting up breakfast on a terrace overlooking the water somewhere.” Yuri’s hair was back under control and he had his glasses on. He was wearing jeans that he’s rolled up at the cuffs and a lightweight, linen shirt.

 

               “If that is your idea of a threat, you’re going to have to up your game because that sounds like my idea of heaven.” Victor couldn’t hold back his grin as Yuri shook his head. “You did bring your contacts, right?”

 

               “Yes, although the fact that you specifically requested I do does not help make me feel any less nervous about what you might be planning.” Victor does know this. He realizes how precious the gift of Yuri’s trust is. It is something he will never take for granted and he is pleased the other man is willing to let Victor put him off and be vague about their plans for the day.

 

               “I just don’t want you to have to worry about misplacing them or breaking them.”

 

               “That still does not make me feel better.” Yuri’s fingers move up to his face and caress the thin arm that connects the frame to the curved bit that goes behind his ears. “Why would you think I want to go somewhere that might cause me to break or lose my glasses.”

 

               “Because Mari said you would like it.” Victor admits. Maybe knowing his sister had given Victor the idea would put Yuri more at ease.

 

               “You consulted my sister for ideas about where to take me on a date?” Yuri asks. He doesn’t sound too terribly upset about it, though, so Victor isn’t worried.

 

               “The other options were Chris or Phichit and I feel like they might have their best interests in mind more than yours.” Yuri frowns and shivers from across the table. “Thought so.”

 

               Yuri seems to be deep in thought now. Probably trying to think about what kind of place his sister might have recommended to Victor as something Yuri might like. Something that would be close enough to Brisbane that the city was a viable place to stay for the weekend. Victor let him puzzle it out. He had learned the hard way that Yuri spent a lot of time in his own head. If Yuri was going to overthink things no matter what Victor did, it was best to give him something positive to contemplate.

 

               He was fairly confident Yuri wouldn’t guess correctly.

 

               “I would say we’re going to the beach, but there’s a beach in Sydney and you didn’t specify to bring my suit.” Victor was sure Yuri had brought it anyway, on the off chance there was a need for it. “Unless you just want to get me alone on a beach… Although are closer places we could have gone that might have had the same effect…”

 

               “You can guess all morning. I’m not telling you. You’ll find out when we get there.”

 

               Yuri grumbles something under his breath, but doesn’t push.

 

               It’s interesting, seeing this grumpy side of his boyfriend. Yuri is a giant ball of contradictions in Victor’s opinion. One minute he’s shy and stuttering. He is nervous glances and flushed cheeks and eye contact that isn’t contact at all, but just slightly to the side of it. Then he’ll be pure confidence. He’ll push his hair back and those full lips will quirk upwards in a self-assured smirk and he _knows_ that it makes Victor’s heart flutter in his chest.

 

               Sleepy Yuri was his favorite, though. Not morning sleepy Yuri, although that had its own charms with the bland sarcasm and banter. It was the Yuri he got to see at night on those rare occasions when Victor would manage to stay up late enough for Yuri’s inner night owl to fly away and leave Yuri boneless and downright snuggly.

 

               It was how Yuri had been last night, after they’d lingered late over drinks and dessert.

 

               Hopefully, it would be Yuri tonight as well.

 

               They did have a long day ahead of them after all.

~

 

               “An amusement park?”

 

               Yuri tried to inject sarcastic disbelief into his words. He failed. He could tell from the way Victor’s face brightened and his blue eyes began to sparkle. He had not been able to hide his excitement at all.

 

               “Mari said you used to love going to them as a kid, but by the time you got tall enough to ride the bigger rides, your parents were always too busy to go.” Victor wrapped an arm around his waist and Yuri allowed himself to be drawn close against Victor’s side. “She looked it up online and thought this might be the perfect place to take you.”

 

               “Mari was right.” Yuri confirms. His skin tingled every time he pictured Victor talking with Mari, asking his sister for somewhere Yuri might like to go. Somewhere he could unwind and completely forget about the burdens that felt like they were growing heavier by the day. Somewhere accomplishing such a feat would be natural because Yuri would be having too much fun to overthink. “Thank you, Vitya.”

 

               Victor pressed a firm kiss to his temple and they joined the queue waiting for the gates to open.

 

               “What do you want to do first?” Victor was excited. It was always easy to tell when his boyfriend was thrilled about something. He never tried to hide it. A light flush would spread over his face and his blue eyes would sparkle. His mouth would fall into that heart-shaped smile. It was like seeing a kid in a candy store. Or maybe a puppy that was let off the leash in a dog park for the first time.

 

               “Anything. Everything.” Victor’s enthusiasm was catching and Yuri felt light on his feet as he craned his neck over the people waiting patiently in front of him, trying to get a good though through the entry gates and into the park beyond.  Victor laughed and Yuri laughed with him. “Sorry, it really has been a long time since I’ve been some place like this.”

 

               “You’ve still got more experience with it than I do.” Victor slips his thumb up under the hem of Yuri’s shirt and strokes the skin at his waist absentmindedly. “I can’t say I’ve ever been somewhere like this. Not that I didn’t want to… There just never was time, I guess.”

 

               “Does that mean you’ve never ridden a rollercoaster before?” Yuri asks, eyes widening in surprise. Victor shook his head. “Wow… Oh, okay. Well, we are definitely going to have to fix that today.”

 

               “I look forward to it.” And he did. He looked like he was ready to follow Yuri to the end of the earth if Yuri would only say the word. It had been uncomfortable at first, knowing Yuri could have this much power over another human being. To know that Victor would do anything for him.

 

               To know that Yuri would do the same for him in return. Empowering and overwhelming at the same time. Yuri wasn’t sure if he would ever get used to that feeling, didn’t think he wanted to. He never wanted to take Victor’s trust in him for granted. It was something he would treasure again and again, every day for the rest of his life if he was granted the opportunity.

 

               There was a cry from the front of the queue and everyone began to shuffle forwards.

 

               They have to separate when they get to the turnstiles. Victor pulls up their tickets on his phone and the bored teenager pops his gum and scans the barcode. Yuri allows a security guard to poke through his messenger bag and then they are through and in an open plaza ringed with shops, their doors flung wide and displays of overpriced clothing, toys, and other souvenirs flashing in the sunlight in an effort to entice people to open their wallets.

 

               Yuri grabs Victor’s hand and drags him over to a stand where they can pick up a map.

 

               “I’m pretty sure we aren’t going to get lost in a fenced in park.” Victor is teasing him, but even though Yuri knows that he can’t help but blush and let out a disgruntled huff of air at his own reaction.

 

               “I know. I’m not grabbing it because I think we’re going to get lost.” That was the truth, although having it in his hands did help the tug of anxiety at the back of his mind. It’s not strong enough that he really feels as though the map is necessary in that aspect, but it does calm that part of him somewhat to have it. “I’m grabbing it so that if we get hungry or need to find a place to rest, we can map out the quickest route to it.”

 

               “Always prepared to take care of me.” Victor pulls them away from the stand so they are no longer blocking it from anyone else that might want to pick up their own maps. “You spoil me, my love.”

 

               “I think you were plenty spoiled before without my help.” And then, because he knows Victor is about to pout and whine, he raises his free hand to cup Victor’s jaw and kisses him.

 

               As he pulls back, he can see the pure love and affection in Victor’s eyes. It knocks the breath out of him, even now. It hasn’t been easy getting used to the feeling of someone treasuring him. Of someone being there for him in a way his family or his friends just can’t. Sometimes it still terrifies him. Sometimes it fills him with elation. Sometimes he doesn’t know what to think about it at all, but he’s learning. He’s growing and changing and becoming what he hopes is a better person.

 

               Love has done that. That elusive feeling Yuri hadn’t known he’d been chasing his whole life.

 

               “Where do you want to go first?” Victor asks the question and Yuri pulls back, dropping his boyfriend’s hand for the moment in order to unfold the map.

 

               The park is a simple enough layout. Basically a shaky oval. They can go in a circle and hit everything once in about three or four hours depending on the lines by Yuri’s estimate. There are a few smaller attractions on the inside of the park, but continuing around the edges will ensure they hit everything major, and those smaller things could be fun for something to do in the heat of the day.

 

               Victor is looking over his shoulder and points out what looks like a long grey tube right in the center of the map.

 

               “What’s that?”

 

               Yuri squints in order to find the number for the attraction Victor has pointed out and matches it to the text around the sides of the map. His contacts are fine as far as making sure everything isn’t blurry and that he’s not in any real danger of running into things, but since Yuri doesn’t use them much, it’s an older prescription and he has a hard time reading smaller print.

 

               “Tower of Terror II.” Yuri reads aloud. “Go backwards at speeds of 160 km/hour in 7 seconds… Are you sure you want to start out with that for your first real ride? We could work our way up to it.” Yuri points at another number on the right hand side of the map in a blue section. “That one says it’s family friendly…”

 

               “Mari gave me the impression you weren’t scared of anything.” Yuri isn’t sure if Victor’s confidence is coming from ignorance or if he really does think he isn’t afraid of anything. “But if you want to start out with the kid’s rides….”

 

               Okay, so Victor wanted a challenge. That was fine with Yuri. The big boy ride it was.

 

               Yuri just hoped Victor was able to keep up.

 

~

 

               Victor knew he had made a terrible mistake as soon as they reached the plastic gates that blocked them from boarding the cars of the ride.

 

               He knows Yuri would let him back out. That Yuri would only tease him about it a little bit. That they could just go about the rest of their resolutely pretending this ride does not exist.

 

               Victor is about to suggest they follow Yuri’s previous suggestion and start out with something small. Something that doesn’t have the word ‘Terror’ in its name, but then the gates swing open and it’s too late.

 

               They take a seat in the back and the black bars are pulled down over their shoulders. Victor feels like he’s going to be sick, but Yuri looks excited. There is a long tunnel in front and behind them and red flashing lights and Yuri looks enthralled, practically vibrating in his seat.

 

               Victor’s vibrating, too, but for a completely different reason.

 

               “How is this thing supposed to get us to 160 km/hour?” Victor looks around, but there doesn’t seem to be much track in front of them, and, though the track behind them was very long from what Victor glimpsed as they had been climbing into their seats, there doesn’t seem to be any incline anywhere. Weren’t rollercoasters supposed to climb some kind of big hill before letting gravity and physics do their thing?

 

               Yuri is sitting on the outside edge of the car, Victor at his left side and a pair of strangers to Victor’s right, kept apart from them by about a twenty centimeter gap. Yuri reaches out and grabs his hand, turning that confident smile on Victor.

 

               “I’m not sure.” He admits and Victor wishes there had been people for them to wait behind. This early in the day, they had been able to walk right on. At least that way they would have been able to see what this thing was going to do. “I guess we’ll find out together.”

 

               There is something Victor wants to say. He’s sure whatever it was would have been witty and clever and brilliant, but he’ll never know what it was because the words are ripped out of his throat as the world launches into motion at what he assumes must be the speed of light.

 

               He is flung forward against the padded bars over his shoulder and they are speeding backwards down that long tunnel. A scream rips itself from out of his throat and he is dimly aware that he is not the only one screaming. Wind blows through his hair and red lights blur as they shoot backwards down the tunnel until there is bright light and they are being lifted up and up and up.

 

               There is a brief moment of suspension as they hover 100 meters over the park. He is weightless floating in the nothingness of empty space. If he hadn’t misplaced his stomach somewhere along the way, he was sure it would have been twisting and turning in his gut. But he’s missing it. Isn’t sure where it is or how he’s going to find it again and isn’t that an odd thing to be thinking right now when he’s pretty sure they are all about to die?

 

               The back of the seat slams into him and knocks what little breath he’d managed to get back out of him as gravity grabs them and they hurtle back towards the earth at speeds Victor can’t even begin to comprehend. The bright light disappears and they are back in the tunnel again, speeding down the track until they screech to a halt back at the platform they had boarded from.

 

               Everything stops except for where Victor’s heart is hammering against his ribs. Yuri is laughing so hard next to him that tears are leaking out of the corner of his eyes, but Victor just sits there and stares, mouth parted but nothing coming out. The ride makes a clicking noise and the restraints bounce up against the strap that is buckled between Victor’s legs.

 

               It’s over?

 

               “Oh, hey, there’s my stomach.”

 

~

 

               “I tried to warn you.” It is getting dark now and they are seated in a restaurant up by the main gates. The day had gone by a in blur as they made their way through everything the park had to offer, excluding the water park as it had been closed for the season by this point. Yuri has dug his glasses out of where he’d stowed them in their hard case in his bag and he’s looking at Victor from across the table with a mirthful glean in his eyes. “I tried to warn you a lot today. When are you going to learn to listen to me?”

 

               “I do listen to you. I always _listen_ to you. I just don’t always follow your advice.” Victor takes a bite of his salad. He’d been avoiding greasy foods since his breakfast had ended up in a trash can outside the first ride they went on that day. “Hey, I made it through everything, didn’t I?”

 

               “Yes, you did.” Yuri admits. “Although I’m thinking having to be rescued by the park staff halfway through that zombie attraction might not have been your best moment.”

 

               “It was a literal maze in there, Yuri! With zombies! If I hadn’t begged for help, we might have been lost in there forever!” Victor hoped the dim lighting of the restaurant hid the blush he could feel burning on his face. “Okay, so I knew they weren’t real zombies, but it was dark and confusing and we could have been trapped. There was no real way to know we weren’t.”

 

               “You’re right. There was a definite chance we could have been trapped in that corner forever if you hadn’t waved the white flag of surrender.” Victor frowns at Yuri’s laughter. The other man notices and takes pity on him. “Okay, okay. No more teasing. I promise.”

 

               “Thank you.” Victor sniffs and takes another hesitant bite of his meal. For the first time today his stomach stays quiet and still instead of flipping or twisting or simply disappearing like it had done multiple times throughout the day.

 

               “I should be thanking you.” Yuri protests. “Thank you. I mean it. Today was amazing. I didn’t even know how much I’ve missed this until now.”

 

               “I’m glad you enjoyed yourself.” Victor is. He really is. There hadn’t been a single moment today where Yuri hadn’t been laughing and smiling. He had led them from one ride to another with a spring in his step that made Victor’s heart soar. Yuri’s excitement had been enough to push Victor to try things he never though he would today. The jury was still out on whether or not thrill rides were his thing or not, but he had never more than a passing discomfort before Yuri’s obvious joy washed over him and wiped it all away. “Today was worth every ounce of my own embarrassment just to see you let yourself go. I don’t think you’ve mentioned work even once since we got here.”

 

               “No, I suppose I haven’t.” Yuri seems surprised by this revelation. Pleasantly so. “ **Thank you, Vitya. Today has been… Amazing.** ”

 

               Yuri had stumbled a bit in the middle and his accent is just as terrible as ever, but his words catch Victor right where he’s most vulnerable. He can’t stop himself from leaning across the table and kissing Yuri deeply, hands sliding into his hair and holding him in place.

 

               Not that Yuri seems to want to go anywhere as he kisses back. Far more open in public than he ever has been before.

 

               Victor would ride every thrill ride on Earth if it got Yuri to kiss him like that in public again.

 

               They break off the kiss eventually. They finish their meals and make their way back out of the park and off to where they can catch a bus back into Brisbane. Yuri hold his hand tightly and leans against him, resting his head on Victor’s shoulder as they wait.

 

               Victor never, ever wants to let him go.


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Some quick housekeeping: Thanks to some wonderful Australian readers, it has been brought to my attention that my brother-in-law has lied to me about the weather conditions in Sydney in September. So... Let's say there was a crazy heat wave due to... Global warming? Government conspiracy? Magic? From now on I will go back to doing my own research, lol.
> 
> Also, I have finally update a total chapter count! Yay!
> 
> So, with that out of the way... How about some more Mari! And Hiroko!

               September – Australia

 

               “Why does it have to be cold again?” Yurio is bundled up in a thick hoodie and frowning as a couple open the door to the café they are eating lunch at this time and a fresh burst of chilled air comes in with them. "I thought it's still technically summer."

 

               “I’m sure there’s an in depth scientific reason behind it, but I don’t care to delve that far into foreign weather patterns.” Victor responds, ignoring the raised middle finger he gets for his efforts.

 

               “It’s actually been unseasonably warm these first few weeks.” Yuri sounds like he’s only half paying attention to the conversation and he has his nose buried in his laptop. “You do know it’s technically still on the tail end of winter here, right? Southern hemisphere, remember? The seasons are flipped.”

 

               “I still say we could go to the beach anyway. It’s not _that_ cold, right Victor?” Chris smirks and Victor returns the expression.

 

               “That sounds like an excellent idea, Christophe.” He’s pretty sure he sees both Yuri and Phichit roll their eyes, but Victor ignores it. “A refreshing dip in the sea sound like exactly what the doctor ordered.”

 

               “Only if the doctor ordered hypothermia and frostbite.” Yuri states blandly, still not looking away from his spreadsheet.

 

               “Nonsense. I’m Russian. This weather is downright balmy.” Victor waves a hand through the air.

 

               “ **Russians can still get frostbite, you fucking idiot.** ” Yurio grumbled and Victor’s heart fluttered when he heard Yuri chuckle under his breath. His Russian was definitely starting to become closer and closer to fluent every day.

 

               It was thrilling to know that Yuri was learning Russian for _him_. That prior to knowing Victor, learning that particular language had never been on Yuri’s radar. No one had ever bothered to learn an entire language on his behalf before. Victor still isn't sure what he is going to do with that information, but he does know he gets a tingle up his spine whenever he thinks about it.

 

               “No one is going to stop you.” Otabeck has his headphones hanging around his neck for once and seems tuned into the conversation more than usual. “Although if you are going to go, make sure Phichit goes with you. He’s the best at getting videos of stupid people doing stupid things.”

 

               “He’s right. I’d prefer it if you didn’t go freeze to death since I’m fairly attached to you, but, if you are determined to be an idiot, please take me with you. I feel compelled to document your downfall for posterity’s sake.” Phichit reached out and punched Chris gently on his upper arm, the Swiss man affecting an over the top look of hurt at the gesture. “Just don’t expect me to help you warm up again once you’re done.”

 

               “Ah, but, _my angel,_ they say body heat is the best cure for chilled bones, do they not?” This time when Phichit lashed out to punch him in the shoulder again, Chris grabbed his boyfriend’s arm before it could land and pulled the smaller man forward and practically into his lap. “See? This is much better, no?”

 

               “Shit.” Yurio flipped the hood of his hoodie aggressively up over his blonde hair. “It’s contagious.”

 

               “What’s contagious?” Victor asked, not quite following Yurio’s train of insults this time.

 

               “The whole sappy, snuggling aesthetic that you and Yuri have going on.” Yurio gestured towards where Phichit had decided to make himself comfortable in Chris lap instead of pulling away and returning to his own chair. “It’s fucking contagious.”

 

               “It’s not contagious. Phichit’s always been like that.” Yuri finally looked up from his work, the glow from the screen casting a bright, white reflection off his lenses as he looked over at Yurio sulking from across the table. “You just haven’t been around them as much lately.”

 

               “Chris has always been like that, too.” Victor agreed, although he had to admit that the way Phichit and Chris were now moving on from giggles and nuzzling, to what could only be described as ‘making out’ was actually kind of disconcerting in a way. “You get used to it.”

 

               “I don’t fucking _want_ to get used to it.” Yuri lashes out with one heavily booted foot and kicks the leg of Chris’ chair, sending them both tumbling to the floor with a startled cry. “Weren’t you dumbasses going to go freeze to death in the ocean? Go on. Don’t keep us waiting.”

 

               There was a brief commotion as Phichit and Chris scrambled to their feet and traded barbed insults with Yurio, but all of that passed over Victor’s head.

 

               Yuri was being more subdued that usual. He always had been a quiet person, but over the past few months he’d been more engaged in social situations, particularly around their core group of friends. Today he seemed a little off. He was watching the spectacle in front of him, but the smile on his face seemed soft and there was a look in his eyes that made it look as though he was somewhere else entirely mentally.

 

               Victor reached out and placed a hand on Yuri’s wrist, drawing the Japanese man’s attention to him and away from the rest of the table.

 

               He didn’t say anything. He didn’t have to. Asking Yuri if he was okay was a murky question at best. Sometimes Yuri appreciated it, sometimes he didn’t. Victor had learned to let Yuri come to him instead. To let Yuri be the one to tell Victor if he was okay or not without Victor having to ask. Trusting that Yuri wasn’t going to hide anything from him.

 

               It took a minute. A long minute where Victor was worried that all their progress might have meant nothing after all, but Yuri relented, facing softening and his hand turning over so that Victor could slide his own into his grasp.

 

               “Work?” That was all the sign he needed and Yuri nodded at his question. “Anything I can do to help?”

 

               “No…” Yuri glanced over to where their other four companions were still distracted in their over the top argument. Yurio was yelling in Russian again and Otabeck was trying to translate so that Phichit and Chris knew exactly what they were responding to. “I mean, there’s nothing you really can do. It’s just… I think I might need to go to Japan.”

 

               “Go to Japan?” Victor repeated the words in an effort to wrap his mind around what was being said.

 

               “Not for long. A few days, tops.” Yuri looks nervous. He’s biting his bottom lip. “It’s just… There are things that are easier for me to do in person. There are some meetings I really need to be at. Telecommuting is great, but it’s no substitute for face to face interaction. That an, there are some time sensitive contracts that will move along a lot faster if Mari and I don’t have to spend several hours or days passing the same documents back and forth one hundred times when just sitting down with her for fifteen minutes would sort everything out.”

 

               “How long have you been thinking about this?” Victor suspects it’s been awhile. There have been subtle clues in Yuri’s mood. Clues Victor still wasn’t adept enough at reading to parse out the overall picture. So, it wasn’t like Yuri was blindsiding him with it. It just felt that way.

 

               “Not long.” Yuri quirked an eyebrow at Victor’s face. When had the other man gotten so good at reading him? “Really. I promise. I think… I think I’ve been ignoring the need to do this for longer than I’ve been truly thinking about it.”

 

               “When would you go?”

 

               “I was considering towards the end of next week. That should give me four days in Japan before everyone else leaves from here to our next stop. I could just go straight from Japan and meet everyone there.” Yuri squeezes Victor’s hand where it rests in his own. Trying to offer comfort and show Victor that it’s not something he wants to do, it’s something he has to do. Something Victor has to _let_ him do.

 

               “I want to come with you.” But nothing said Victor had to let him do it alone. “I promise not to bother you when you are supposed to be working.”

 

               “You don’t have to do that.” Yuri moved so that his chair was closer now. The argument on the other side of the table was dying down now and Victor mirrored the motion. He didn’t want the others poking their noses in until they had decided exactly what they were going to do. “I’ll be fine for a few days on my own.”

 

               “I know I don’t have to do it.” Victor did know. He knew they would be fine without each other for a few days. That didn’t mean he didn’t want to come. To see this part of Yuri’s life, too. The part of him that was going to be more prevalent the closer they got to the end of the year and graduation. “I want to go. You’ll be more than fine without me, but I want to be there. If you want me to be, of course.”

 

               Yuri doesn’t answer right away. Four months ago Victor might have been offended by his hesitation. Now, he took a deep breath and let Yuri sort through whatever he was feeling. Sometimes emotions got too much for Yuri, clouded his mind and caused him to do rash things when he wasn’t given the proper amount of time to formulate a response under pressure.

 

               “Can we talk about it tonight?”

 

               Victor had noticed it, too. The way Phichit was looking at them more than at Yurio now. The way the conversation was coming back down to normal levels and their distraction was becoming more evident.

 

               “Of course. Tonight.”

 

~

 

               “Let him come. We have plenty of space.” Victor couldn’t keep the grin off his face even if he had wanted to. They were curled up on their bed, laptop between them and Mari’s face superimposed on the screen. “It might be good for you to have someone around who won’t let you work too hard, little brother.”

 

               “Are you sure?” It was harder to get a read on Yuri’s emotions than his own as Yuri was clearly trying to keep them muted and out of reach.

 

               “I can be very distracting, apparently.” Victor and Mari laughed while Yuri only turned his eyes heavenwards as though he were asking the gods themselves to grant him patience. “You don’t have to say ‘yes’ to spare my feelings, Mari. If I’m going to be in the way I don’t mind staying here with the rest of the class.”

 

               “He’s going to be distracted whether you’re here or not, so you might as well be here.” Mari shrugs and Yuri groans and turns red, burying his face in his hands. “Don’t be like that, bro. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be close to your boyfriend.”

 

               Yuri mutters something in Japanese that Victor doesn’t quite catch. Whereas Yuri had made impressive strides with learning Russian, Victor has not been quite as diligent when it comes to his Japanese studies. It doesn’t help that when they are alone, Yuri had been determined to try and communicate solely in Russian, taking Victor’s immersion idea and running with it.

 

               Mari responds with a laugh and something that is also said in Japanese. She then must catch sight of Victor’s confused expression because she switches back to English. “Bring the boy. Mom and dad have been bugging me ever since you told them the two of you were officially dating. They want to get him to know him more.”

 

               “Fine, fine. He can come.” Yuri sounded a bit more excited now. That excitement made Victor feel better. “I’ll forward you our itinerary once we’ve booked the tickets?”

 

               “Yes. I know you were planning on being here for four days, but do you think you can work it out for five?” Mari smiles as Yuri nods. “Good. It would be best if you fly into Sapporo. If you get in early enough we can spend the day and night there to tie up those loose ends and then we can leave for Hasetsu in the morning. Dad convinced me not to move headquarters to Tokyo for another year or so, so our investors will be meeting us at home.”

 

               “That sounds fine.” Yuri agrees and then turns to Victor. “Do you mind if Mari and I speak in Japanese now? Business stuff only, I promise.”

 

               “Sure.” Victor acquiesces easily enough. Yuri has already explained to him on multiple occasions that there are certain aspects of their business plans he doesn’t want to discuss with Victor, not because he doesn’t want to, but because it’s not his place. He might trust Victor with everything he has, but there are trade secrets that Yuri has signed nondisclosure agreements to protect. “I could use a shower anyway.”

 

               “Perfect. We should be done by the time you are and then we can look at flights together, okay?”

 

               “Okay.” Victor can’t resist giving Yuri a quick peck on the lips as he gets up to leave, feeling warmth wash over him as Yuri blushes and stutters a bit, but doesn’t push him away.

 

               He leaves the siblings to it, not able to hide his satisfied smirk as Yuri stumbled over his words and Victor can tell from Mari’s tone of voice she’s teasing him about what Victor had just done. He’s sure he’ll get a long lecture about public displays of affection in front of Yuri’s family before they make it to Japan. Victor is sure he’ll follow about half of Yuri’s rules and he knows Yuri will understand that as well.

 

               That’s probably why there will be so many rules.

 

               Victor lingers in the shower, trying to give Yuri as much time as possible with his sister. There is still a part of him that worries in a way that he isn’t entirely used to. A part of him that isn’t sure at all if Yuri is just going along with his impulsiveness in order to humor him.

 

               A part of him that can’t help but wonder if Yuri doesn’t really want him in Japan at all.

 

               It’s odd, this feeling of insecurity. It’s not that Victor doesn’t have his flaws or his moments of doubts. He is human, after all. It’s just, those weak moments never felt so _important_ before. He’d never really cared what others thought of him in the past. As far as he was concerned, if they didn’t want to go along with his random whims or flights of fancy, he didn’t care. They would either be there when he got back or not be there at all. He would hurt for a time and then he would get over it because if they had mattered they would have understood.

 

               In short, he had been very, very selfish.

 

               With Yuri he didn’t want to be selfish, though. Didn’t want to push and prod and test boundaries just because he was bored and it was something to do. He knew it would feel like dying if he pushed Yuri away. Knew that it would be like cutting out his lungs or his heart. Removing an intrinsic part of him that was going to be impossible to live without.

 

               But Victor was still human and still made mistakes and pushed when he shouldn’t. Held on when he should let go.

 

               Yuri still has his laptop open when Victor comes out of the bathroom, hair damp and in a pair of track pants and a thick sweater. The other man looks up and his eyes light up when they fall on Victor. It settles the strange slip and slide of emotions in the pit of his stomach. Yuri is better than some people think about hiding what he is really feeling, but he doesn’t hide from Victor any longer.

 

               “I’ve booked our flight.” Yuri closes his laptop with a click and places it on the, now familiar, box nightstand. Victor’s actually been thinking about making one for his flat once he returns home. Every time he makes a new one it is better than the one before. “Don’t worry about your half. We’ll just expense it to my company account.”

 

               “You don’t have to do that.” Victor isn’t sure he understands all the mechanics of business accounts and expense reports. He isn’t entirely certain he wants to or ever will, but he does know that usually there has to be some kind of business involved for the expense to qualify and Victor definitely isn’t coming along for business reasons. Although maybe it’s different when you own the company? Maybe Victor can ask his father some time.

 

               “I want to do it. Besides, it makes sense.” Yuri shrugs and pats the bed next to him, snuggling into Victor’s side as the other man takes the cue and settles in. “This isn’t going to be much of a holiday trip for me. I mean, I’m going to spend time with you, but you are going to be alone a lot.”

 

               “I’ll find something to keep me busy. There’s a French assignment for Yurio due in October that I’ve been putting off looking at. I can do that and some other things.” Victor lets Yuri’s weight fall against him and they slide down the bed until Victor is on his back with Yuri resting on his chest. “Maybe go up to the ice rink?”

 

               “Yuko-chan would love that.” Yuri yawns and Victor reaches out to gently remove his glasses and place them on the nightstand. “She likes you. They all like you.”

 

               “You talk about me that much?” Victor feels flattered.

 

               “Why wouldn’t I?” The question sounds sincere. “It’s not like I want to hide our relationship from my family and they have always supported me in whatever I want to do. Mom asks about you all the time. You should hear her. ‘How’s that cute Russian boy doing? The one with the smile and the pretty hair. You haven’t let him get away, have you?’ Sometimes I think she’s more in love with you than I am.”

 

               “She thinks my hair is pretty?”

 

               “Vitya, everyone thinks your hair is pretty.”

 

               “Fair enough.”

 

               They settled down into companionable silence. Victor knew at some point they were going to have to move. The lights were still on and Yuri was still in jeans. Even though he knew the moment would be broken eventually, he allowed it to linger on.

 

               His fingers shifted through Yuri’s soft hair. Yuri nuzzled his nose against Victor’s throat in response.

 

               Victor must have ended up falling asleep against his own intentions as the next thing he knew the room was filled with moonlight and Yuri was curled at his side, back pressed against his chest.

 

               His eyelids felt heavy and he could feel himself drifting back down into the sleep’s grasp. Before he let it go he took a moment to watch the pale moonlight play across the planes of Yuri’s face.

 

               Even in sleep, his boyfriend was gorgeous. Thick lashes, smooth skin, hair that spilled out across the white pillow like ink seeping across a blank page. There was a tug at the base of his heart and Victor let his eyes slide closed, burying his forehead in the nape of Yuri’s neck.

 

               How was he ever supposed to let Yuri go?

 

               He hoped he would never have to find out.

 

~

 

               Victor was glad he had allowed Yuri to convince him to bring all his bags instead of leaving a few behind for Chris or Phichit to take with them. It was about 13 degrees Celsius once they stepped off the plane and there was a misting rain settling over the Sapporo skyline that made it feel like a degree or two colder than it actually was. Even though Victor was certainly no stranger to the cold, the rain made the chill seep into every nook and cranny and he was grateful for the ability to pull one of his thicker sweatshirts from out of his luggage in order to keep it at bay.

 

               Mari meets them at the airport with a hug for Yuri and a firm pat on the back for Victor. She’s hired a car and they all squish into the back seat as Yuri and Mari begin to discuss their agenda for the day.

 

               “I’m sorry, Victor, but it made more sense to get the meetings out of the way early. We should have some free time in the evening and I’ve booked us tickets on a flight that leaves first thing in the morning to take us back home.” Mari does sound sorry and Victor waves her off.

 

               “I knew this trip was more business than holiday when I asked to come. Don’t worry about me.” Yuri places a hand on his knee and squeezes. Victor smiles and places his own hand on top of his boyfriend’s and squeezes back.

 

               Mari raises an eyebrow, but doesn’t comment. There is a second where it looks like Yuri wants to say something, maybe to explain his behavior, but he must think the better of it because the next words out of his mouth are business related. He doesn’t move his hand, though.

 

               “How are the renovations going?” Yuri sounds curious and maybe a little excited. “When we spoke a few days ago you said there was an issue with the water flow to the second floor rooms?”

 

               “Yes, we knew we might hit some complications trying to pump water from the springs under the new location into rooms on the second floor without compromising the quality of the water, but the engineers seem convinced they’ve come to a more cost effective solution at last…”

 

               Victor is sitting against the door of the car and Yuri is in the middle. He allows the sibling’s conversation to flow without interruption, turning his gaze to watch as they crawl through the crowded streets. Yuri’s hand is warm on his knee and he focuses on that point of contact in an effort to center himself and stay grounded.

 

               He still can’t quite believe Yuri let him come.

 

               They arrive at their destination quickly enough and they are met on the curb by a man in a suit who bows, says something in Japanese to both Yuri and Mari, and then takes their bags and disappears into the depths of the luxury hotel they are standing in front of. Victor watches him go before craning his neck to look up at the building above him.

 

               It’s odd. The building is about ten stories high and there are entire floors that don’t have any lights on. Even though he knows he wouldn’t be able to read the words even if they were there, he finds it odd that there are no obvious signs that would tell passersby what this place even is.

 

               He follows Yuri and Mari into the lobby and realizes why there are no identifying markers and why some floors don’t have lights on. There are construction workers everywhere. They chatter in Japanese as they go about their business and, aside from a few curious glances at their small group mostly towards Victor really since he sticks out like a sore thumb with his taller stature, silver hair, and pale skin, no one pays them much mind.

 

               “There are a few rooms on the first floor that are ready. I’ve been staying here on and off as we get closer to our completion date.” Mari sends Victor a look that he reads as her wanting him to re-enter the conversation. “There’s two rooms with private baths that are habitable down here. One of them is mine. I thought the two of you might like to take the other for the night. It doesn’t look like the weather is going to improve much so the bath might be a nice way to warm up…”

 

               Yuri flushes and whispers something in rapid-fire Japanese that causes Mari to laugh. Victor just sits there looking smug.

 

               “Calm down, little brother. You don’t want to cause a scene, do you?” Yuri glares, but stops babbling. “You up for a quick tour before we go into our first meeting?”

 

               “I’d like to see it.” Yuri is still glaring daggers at his sister, but his face softens as he turns his head to look at Victor. “Would you like to come, or do you want to go to the room and rest for a bit?”

 

               “I want to see.” Victor confirms.

 

               “They’ve done a lot of work with the roof space. We can start there.” Mari led them to a bank of elevators off to the side of the open space. “We’ve been lucky. This place already had pretty decent layout of rooms. It’s making the renovations take less time than anticipated.”

 

               “I thought you were going to build from the ground up?” Victor remembered Yuri saying something about that a few months ago. About trying to get building permits, breaking ground, complaining about the stress of trying to build something from nothing.

 

               “We were.” Yuri says as the golden doors slide closed behind them and Mari swipes a key card before pressing a button emblazoned with the English letter “R”. “About two weeks before our permits were set to go through Mari found this place instead. It’s an older apartment building, but we decided renovating this into a luxury hotel would save more on the bottom line than building something totally new and it would mean we could open sooner.”

 

               “We both liked the idea of the history of this place, too. Taking something that’s been here and just making it new again.” Mari leans against the plain wall of the elevator. “There are a few other projects hovering on the horizon so renovating as opposed to building works into our schedule a bit better.”

 

               “Do you have any of the rooms up here done so Victor can see the décor? I was thinking about getting his opinion on some of the ideas we’ve been floating around for decorations. He’s actually really good at that kind of thing.” Yuri asks and Victor perks up. Yuri wants his opinion? Yuri wants his opinion because he thinks it would be a good one and genuinely desires Victor’s personal and professional input?

 

               That was unexpected. Pleasant, but definitely unexpected.

 

               “Let’s check out the roof and then I’ll call the contractor. Aside from our rooms downstairs I think they’ve completed the rooms on the fourth floor. That’s actually one of the things I wanted you to see anyway. Once you’ve signed off, they can start the other floors and then we can discuss the design for the penthouse suites on the tenth floor next month.” Mari pulled out her phone and began tapping her index finger against the screen as the elevator came to a stop. “If you see anything you like or don’t like, let us know, Victor. It’ll be good to have an outsider’s perspective.”

 

               “Sure… I mean, of course! Happy to help.” And Victor was. Even if was still a little confused as to why either sibling wanted his help or opinion in the first place.

 

               Yuri gave him a fond look as they stepped off the elevator and back into the chill air on the roof. Victor returned it, trying to hide exactly how nervous he really was underneath it all.

 

               Yuri wanted him here. Wanted him to see, to have a voice, to be by his side.

 

               Victor had never wanted anything more in his entire life.

 

~

 

               As he stared at the room designs Victor had been working on since the day before, Yuri was starting to wonder if there was anything Victor Nikiforov wasn’t inherently good at.

 

               Okay, so he was still pretty terrible at Japanese and he did have a tendency to get lost no matter where they were or how simple the layout. Then there was always the image of him cowering behind Yuri in the dark and using him as a shield against the actors dressed as zombies in the maze they’d attempted to go through back at the amusement park. That was always a good mental picture to hold onto whenever Victor started to feel a little too perfect.

 

               Yeah, that definitely helped to turn down the wow factor.

 

               They had made it from Sapporo to Hasetsu earlier that morning and Victor had gone off with Yuri’s mother to the kitchen while Mari and Yuri set up camp in one of the back rooms they’d converted into a makeshift conference room while they waited for their first round of meetings to begin.

 

               “[Your Russian boy toy has some good ideas here.]” Mari had an eyebrow raised as she sorted through some doodles Victor had left behind.

 

               “[I told you he had a knack for color coordination. You should see his wardrobe.]” Yuri grabbed one of Victor’s rough sketches and turned it around in his hands to see a different angle. “[And he’s not my boy toy.]”

 

               “[Eh, boy toy, boyfriend. Same thing.]” Mari pushed her pile of papers towards the center of the table. “[When’s the wedding, by the way?]”

 

               “[To have a wedding, there has to be an engagement first.]” Yuri resolutely ignored the twisting of his heart, trying to focus on the drawing in front of him.

 

               “[Not necessarily, but you have always been the more traditional of the two of us.]” Mari is now looking at him fully, but Yuri refuses to meet her gaze. His sister knows him too well as it is. The second she looks into his eyes she’ll know everything and he’s not sure if he’s ready for everything just yet. “[Don’t tell mom you haven’t put a ring on it yet. She’ll have to ask for the deposit on the venue back. Not to mention it would break her heart.]”

 

               “[You’re not funny.]”

 

               “[Of course I am. You just have a poor sense of humor.]” Now Yuri did look over, more to glare than anything else. “[What’s the delay?]”

 

               “[What’s the rush?]” Yuri countered. “[You do know we’ve only been dating for barely six months now, right?]”

 

               “[Mom is in the kitchen right now teaching him how to make _katsudon_. You know she guards that family recipe with her life. She hasn’t even taught me how to do that yet.]”

 

               “[Because you don’t want to learn.]”

 

               “[Stop interrupting.]” Mari waved a hand when Yuri opened his mouth to protest again. He snapped it closed again. “[You love him. He loves you. What’s the problem?]”

 

               “[You know it’s more complicated than that.]” Yuri ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “[We haven’t even talked about the future, yet. I don’t even know what we’re going to do once the year is up. Should I go there? Would he want to come here? _Could_ I go there if he doesn’t want to come here? I don’t have the answer to any of those questions.]”

 

               “[You know I love you to death, little brother, but all that just sounds like details to me.]” Mari shrugs at Yuri’s stern look. “[You always have been one to get caught up in the details of the thing. Never seeing the forest for the trees. Trying to complicate what should be simple. Like I said: You love him. He loves you. The details will come when they come so long as you aren’t afraid to ask for what you want.]”

 

               “[How can I ask for what I want when I don’t even know what that is?]”

 

               “[I think you know exactly what it is you want. You just don’t want to admit it.]”

 

               Yuri fell silent. She wasn’t wrong. He might not have the details he so desperately craved and he didn’t know where to begin to turn his desires into reality, but he did know that he wanted Victor, and not just until the end of the year.

 

               He wanted a future. He wanted forever. Wanted long walks on the beach and waking up with Victor’s weight on top of him, crushing but not unwelcome. He wanted to hear Victor’s off-tune singing in the shower and he wanted Victor grabbing the covers and stealing them in the morning while chattering in Russian for Yuri to get up and greet the day. He wanted those quiet times when they would order in and curl up on the bed watching movies and he even wanted the nights out on the town where Victor was in his element and could charm the pants off literally anyone he chose… Knowing that he was choosing Yuri every single time.

 

               It felt like Victor was the only thing he had wanted for his entire life, even before he’d known there was a Victor to want. All the good and the bad. The amazing and the annoying parts of Victor, too. He desired them all. Wasn’t sure what he was going to do if Victor ever went away.

 

               Wasn’t sure he could handle it if he ever did.

 

               “[I need a smoke.]”

 

               Yuri blinked back into the present as Mari pushed away from the table and got to her feet.

 

               “[I’ll be back before the investors get here.]” Mari ruffles his hair on her way out the door, and then Yuri is left alone.

 

               Alone with his own thoughts. Thoughts which were supposed to be on work, but were most definitely still stuck on Victor as they so often were these days.

 

               Well, that was no good.

 

               Yuri needed to clear his head. Needed to get back on track before he has to help his sister give a presentation in front of a bunch of strangers.

 

               He gets to his feet in one smooth motion and leaves the room without a clear destination in mind.

 

               Mari is most likely smoking out back, not wanting to have the investors run into her while she takes her break. That cuts off two avenues to him. Yuri does not want to give Mari another opening to scrutinize his personal life and he doesn’t want to run into the investors on his own either so getting some fresh air is out of the question.

 

               He supposes he could go up to his room, before he remembers that his meddling sister has been using his room for storage and right now there isn’t enough space for him up there. He’s supposed to be sharing the old banquet room/makeshift bedroom with Victor for the next few days and that is not something he wants to think about either. Standing in their room staring at their suitcases piled together in the corner and remembering that his entire family is going to be painfully aware of the fact that they’ll be sharing the same futon is not the way to clear his thoughts.

 

               That leaves the upstairs out, too.

 

               When he’s feeling anxious being around people is not a good idea, either. Standing in the hall, he can hear the quiet murmur of patrons from the dining room. Enough noise so that he instinctively knows there isn’t going to be solace for him there. The bathhouse is also obviously out as he doesn’t have the time to bathe and it might be considered poor form to hang around fully dressed while people are washing off.

 

               Before he realizes where his feet are taking him, he finds himself hovering around the open entryway that leads to the smaller kitchen behind the larger commercial one. If he angles his body just right, he can see in, but still remain shrouded in the shadows in a way that any occupants within wouldn’t be able to see him.

 

               Sure enough, Victor and his mother are there, backs to him and hovering over one long counter, ingredients spread out in front of them and Yuri’s mother pointing to various things as she needs them.

 

               “[Next we put this all in the pan. I need the sugar.]”

 

               Hiroko points down the counter at where there are about ten jars of different seasonings and spices. Someone, probably Victor if Yuri is reading the handwriting correctly, has taped English labels on them. Victor points to the one clearly labeled ‘Ginger’. Even without having to see his face, Yuri knows that he’s giving Yuri’s mother his most endearing and innocent grin.

 

               Hiroko laughs in a way that Yuri knows means she understands Victor is doing this on purpose. “Not ginger. [Sugar}.”

 

               “Ah… Cumin?” Victor points to another bottle and this time Hiroko taps him lightly on the shoulder. “Oh, you mean [sugar].”

 

               This time he points to the right bottle and Yuri’s mother beams.

 

               “You need to get Yuri to teach you more. You need more Japanese.” Hiroko takes the container of sugar from Victor and sprinkles it over what is already simmering in the pan. “He is… What is the word for not taking enough effort?”

 

               “Lazy?” Victor ventures a guess and Hiroko shakes her head. “Slacking off?”

 

               “Yes. That sounds right. Yuri’s friend uses that phrase when he is here.” Hiroko keeps her eye on the pan in front of her now. “You need to learn more.”

 

               “Yuri tries.” Victor reaches out and pulls the green onions closer to him, taking the knife Hiroko pulls from a drawer for him to use and he begins to chop. “I get distracted….” Yuri’s mother is looking at him with obvious confusion, so Victor tries again. “I mean… Sidetracked? Um…. I don’t focus well. When I’m with Yuri. Sometimes it is hard to focus.”

 

               “[Distracted.]” Yuri knows Victor can’t understand that word in Japanese, but it seems his mother has said it more for her benefit than his. “While you are here, I will teach you. Not much, but some. I will help.”

 

               “Thank you, Katsuki-san. I would be honored.”

 

               Hiroko waves her hand. “Not Katsuki-san. You are family. Oka-san. Use this, yes?”

 

               “I-I I couldn’t…” Victor sounds like he’s about to cry. Yuri’s heart is fluttering his chest and there is the tell-tale burn of tears in the corner of his own eyes.

 

               “You make my Yuri happy.” Hiroko states plainly. “You make him happy so that makes you family. You will call me Oka-san. Please.”

 

               “I…” Victor swallows audibly and then nods. “Yes… Um… [Thank you… Oka-san.]”

 

               “Yes. Good.” Hiroko places her hands gently on Victor’s shoulder. “Now. When you finish onions, I need eggs. [You can get the eggs?]”

 

               “[Yes. Eggs. I can… find?]”

 

               “See? Better already.”

 

               Yuri steps back, hand clasped over his mouth in an effort not to let any sound escape. He retreats down the hallway quickly, ducking back into the conference room without checking to see if Mari has made it back yet. Thankfully, she has not.

 

               He sinks down into his chair, futilely trying to wipe the tears from his eyes. This is not good. He doesn’t need to go into his meeting with red eyes and snot dripping out of his nose. That will not make a professional picture at all.

 

               Yuri takes a deep breath and then another. Wrestling his emotions back under control with each cycle of inhales and exhales. It’s not easy. Especially since there is only one thing he can think right now and it had absolutely nothing to do with hotel renovations or investors.

 

               “[I’m going to marry that man…]”


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Wow... The response for the last chapter was just... Overwhelming. In a good way. I am so honored and literally a speechless. Thank you so much to everyone, for those who have been there from the beginning to those who have popped in along the way. I can't begin to explain how much your support means.
> 
> As always, enjoy! ^_^

               October – El Salvador

 

               By the time they arrive in San Salvador, the others are already there and mostly unpacked. Phichit meets them in front of the dorm, though, ushering them in and leading them up to the third floor.

 

               “We’ve already done all the sorting around. It’s one of the smaller rooms, but since you weren’t here, we figured you don’t get a say.” Phichit moved out of the way so that Yuri could unlock the door with the key they’d been given. “Chris and I thought you might not care so long as you got to room together again though.”

 

               “How did you get the administration to agree?” Yuri asked as they stepped into the room. Victor had to admit that Phichit wasn’t wrong. It was definitely quite a bit smaller than the other rooms they’d been in over the course of the year, but he truly didn’t mind. It was kind of cozy in a way, even if he suspected they were going to have to stack the desks on top of each other this time in order to make everything fit in a way that still gave them enough space to move around the room without bumping into furniture every five seconds.

 

               “It was easy enough.” Phichit shrugs. “Chris just made up some story about Yuri’s business maybe taking longer than he thought it would and that it would be easier for everyone if they just shifted room assignments to accommodate for any possible delays. I don’t know all the details, but Chris can be very convincing when he wants something.”

 

               “You would know.” Victor points out. He dumps his bags on the bed closest to him and then grabbed Yuri’s bags from him and piled them on top of his own. It’s not like it mattered which bed was technically supposed to belong to whom since they were going to be pushed together by the end of the day anyway.

 

               “ _How was your trip?_ ” Victor looks over to find Chris leaning in the doorway now. Yuri has already placed his messenger bag on one of the desks and is rifling through it with Phichit hanging over his shoulder grilling him in what sounds to be Thai. That’s odd. Usually they speak Japanese together…

 

               Victor shakes his head and comes back into the present. There’s probably nothing to worry about there. He’s just going to get himself worked when there isn’t anything to get worked up about.

 

               “ _Wonderful, my dear._ ” Neither Yuri nor Phichit seem to be bothered by the fact that Victor has responded to Chris’ French in kind. “ _Relaxing in all the best ways if you know what I mean. Someday we all need to go visit together and you can try out those magical hot springs. It’s almost like a religious experience if you ask me._ ”

 

               “ _Hot water, naked men, and a little bird has told me you can even drink alcohol while you bathe? Sounds like my kind of place. I’m in._ ” Chris bounces into the room and plops down on the empty bed on the other side of the room, grinning widely.

 

               “ _There are rules. You wouldn’t want to offend anyone, Christophe. You’ll need to be on your best behavior._ ”

 

               “ _Who, me? When am I ever not?_ ” They both laugh then, catching Yuri and Phichit’s attention at last. Chris seems to sense this as well and switches to English in order to bring the two separate conversations into one. “A group of us were wanting to do some aimless wandering. The high was like 25 Celsius today and it’s supposed to be warm for a bit longer until the sun sets so we figured it was safe enough to go out spend some time out of doors without Yurio bitching too much.”

 

               “I’m impressed Yurio wants to come regardless of the weather report.” Phichit states.

 

               “He’s been better lately. Especially since we all started helping him last month.” Yuri punches Phichit lightly on his upper arm as it looks as though the Thai man is about to open his mouth again. “Be nice. He’s having a tough time.”

 

               “I know, I know. That’s why I invited him… That and I guess he’s pretty okay when he’s not hissing at people.” Phichit admits. “Oh, the pot for him to get together with Otabeck before the end is now at about a grand. You sure you don’t want in?”

 

               “I’m sure.” Yuri says.

 

               “What denomination are we talking here? Euros? Rubles? Yen?” Victor asks even though he knows Yuri is going to glare at him and probably lecture him for sticking his nose in where it doesn’t belong later. “Or… What’s the currency here? Pesos?”

 

               “American dollars. Leo’s pretty confident it’s going to happen either before we get to America or sometime while we’re there so he pushed for US dollars. Plus, I have recently found out when I tried to purchase a coffee this morning, that it is the currency here as well.” Chris explains. “I still say that’s not fair because _I’m_ pretty sure they’ve been dating in secret since the UK, but I was overruled.”

 

               “You do know that it’s things like this that is the reason Yurio yells at you guys so much.” Yuri sighs and Victor moves to where he is standing behind his boyfriend now, wrapping his arms around the other man’s waist and resting his chin on Yuri’s shoulder. To his credit, Yuri only tries to wiggle away for about ten seconds this time before going limp and leaning his weight back against Victor’s broad chest. “Fine, I’m not going to stop you, but when this blows up in your faces, and it will, don’t come running to me for favors.”

 

               “Wouldn’t dream of it.” Phichit has his phone out and Victor smiles as he snaps a picture of them. “Ah, my two favorite subjects are back at last!”

 

               “I don’t remember consenting to be your Instagram model.” Yuri grumbles, but Victor notes that he doesn’t pull away and he doesn’t need to see the picture to know Yuri’s expression is soft and open.

 

               Something has shifted between them during their time in Japan. It’s like before their relationship was still soupy and undefined around the edges even with everything they’d been through. It was like wet cement, viscous and settling, but not completely hardened yet.

 

               Now… Now it felt like the concrete was set, the edges solid and the center settling into what it needed to be in order to support the weight of whatever it was they would eventually build there. Victor had never been in a relationship like this. Had never wanted to be before. He wasn’t sure if this was normal or if it was the right time for him to be feeling this way. Wasn’t sure of much of anything other than the basics.

 

               He loved Yuri. He loved Yuri with his whole heart in way that made his entire body ache sometimes. And Yuri love him back, had opened the door to let Victor into his life.

 

               Victor was ready to take that step, to open the door in return.

 

               Ready to never look back.

 

~

 

               There was a mall in the center of the city that they had decided to make their base of operations. Stuff libraries were a thing of the past and the sprawling city center was the perfect amount of hustle and bustle for them. Leo or Isabella were never far in case they hit a snag and needed someone to speak Spanish, but there were enough tourist draws that English was common enough and the mall and its surrounding bars, restaurants, and other attractions was more than enough to keep them busy when staring at dry textbooks threatened to throw them into a pit of despair.

 

               Victor had noticed there had been a bit of a split within their study group. For the most part Guang Hong, Leo, Seung-Gil, Emil, and Michele had kind of become their own group within the larger whole while Victor, Yuri, Otabeck, Yurio, Chris, and Phichit had done the same. And then there was Sara and Isabella who had taken up an unexpected friendship that drug JJ along with them wherever they wanted to go.

 

               Phichit, ever the social butterfly, was able to easily flit between the three groups, and he brought them together more often than not. They would still study together, exchange notes, sometimes go out to dinner, but eventually the split would start again and they would end up on opposite ends of the city center with Phichit’s group chat the only thing tying them together in case they wanted to close the divide in order to do something.

 

               Today they found JJ, Isabella, and Sara had followed their group as they had meandered away from the centrally located Starbucks that acted like their central hub and homing point when they weren’t on campus, but needed electricity and wifi to get their work done.

 

               “There’s a bar and grill on top of that building over there.” JJ points towards a building about a block away that’s about medium height compared with the others around. “They convert the space into a club in the evenings, but Isabella and I grabbed an early dinner there the other day and it was good. I think they have lunch specials, too.”

 

               “Sounds good.” Victor is quick to speak, just in case Yurio decides to be contrary just because it’s a suggestion by JJ. It’s not that Victor still really knows much about the Canadian, but he does know that he seems earnest enough. Less like he wants to be the center of attention and more like he’s trying to make an outreach. “Any objections?”

 

               “I’m always down for some day drinking.” Chris says.

 

               “Just because it’s a bar doesn’t mean we have to get drunk at noon on a Tuesday.” It seems as though if Yurio isn’t going to outright shoot down the suggestion, he is going to have to find something to complain about. Chris is usually a fairly good target and doesn’t get offended easily so Victor doesn’t feel the need to try and smooth things over. "What kind of fucking people do that?"

 

               “It’s been awhile since we’ve been pants on our heads wasted.” Phichit, on the other hand, cannot resist an opportunity to tease. “Might as well pregame now and go hard tonight. You know, for old time’s sake.”

 

               “I don’t think my liver has recovered from those old times you are remembering with severely misplaced fondness. Or my stomach.” Yuri frowns deeply and Victor knows that whatever the others do, Yuri is not going to be in the mood to partake. “But if you guys want to go make fools of yourselves, don’t let me stop you.”

 

               “To the bar!” Phichit lurches forward and the rest of them stumble to keep up with varying levels of enthusiasm.

 

               “ **Isn’t anyone else concerned that it is a fucking Tuesday?** ” Yurio complains, though Victor isn’t sure if he is complaining to Otabeck, Victor, or maybe Yuri, who has been using Yurio for practicing his Russian accent when Victor is busy or in one of his moods where he is less than helpful as far as pronunciation is concerned and more focused on trying to convince Yuri what he really wants to do is go back to the dorm and practice in private. “ **We have class tomorrow.** ”

 

               “ **So don’t drink.** ” Otabeck shrugs, ignoring the glare Yurio shoots him in response. “ **You can help Yuri get the rest of us back to the dorm safely. He’d probably appreciate the assistance.** ”

 

               “ **You want to drink, Beka?** ” Victor perks up at Yurio’s question. For as long as they have known the Kazak, he has never had more than a beer or two. He’s either been working or has relegated himself to designated drunk wrangler for some reason or another.

 

               “ **We’ll see.** ” There is a beat where it looks like Yurio is going to say something further, but Otabeck raises and eyebrow and he doesn’t. “ **Come on, Yura. We wouldn’t want to fall behind.** ”

 

               “Stop eavesdropping.” Victor jolts a bit as Yuri whispers in his ear and brings him back into the moment. “I doubt they are going to declare their love for each other in the middle of the street in broad daylight and ten meters away from the nosiest people on this trip. Even if they are speaking in Russian.”

 

               “That’s not why I was eavesdropping, thank you very much.” Victor puts on a front like he’s insulted Yuri would think that of him, but they both knows that’s partially what he was doing.

 

               “How much did you put into Phichit’s underground betting ring?” Yuri asks, keeping his tone casual and an eye out on their friends. They’ve mostly spread out along the sidewalk as Phichit and Chris are leading the charge and Yurio and Otabeck are dragging their heels and Victor and Yuri and kind of caught somewhere in the middle, right behind JJ, Isabella, and Sara. “Before you pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about, remember that this is me you’re talking to. I’ll know if you’re lying.”

 

               Victor is not entirely sure if Yuri would really know if he was lying or not, but it’s not like he wants to do so. Even if he could get away with it, Yuri would find out eventually and he does not want to find himself in the doghouse for something as stupid as this.

 

               “Fifty dollars… Or well, something close to that in any case. I thought we were betting in euros. I’m not sure how what I put in the pot would convert off the top of my head.” Yuri rolls his eyes, but doesn’t seem upset or offended. “You don’t mind, right? I can tell Phichit I’m out if it really bothers you.”

 

               “Just because I don’t want to participate doesn’t mean I care if you do.” Yuri leans into him, reaching out and twining their fingers together. Victor lets this gesture relax him. It’s nice to be back in a place where Yuri is more comfortable with Victor hanging off him. In Hasetsu, there was always a few centimeters of distance whenever one of Yuri’s family members were around. “Split it with me if you win?”

 

               God, but Victor was never going to get tired of Yuri's surprises. “I have a better idea. If I win, I’ll use it to take you on one of those fabulous dates you pretend to hate, but we both know you secretly love. Deal?”

 

               “Deal.” There’s a light pink tinge to Yuri’s cheeks, but he doesn’t duck his head or pull away like he used to do in the past when he was embarrassed. “Can I have a say in where we go?”

 

               “Oh, you’re that confident that I’m going to win?” Victor asks, and there it is. The more intense blush, the way Yuri’s chin tips downwards just enough that his glasses slide a fraction of a centimeter down the bridge of his nose. “Well, my love, I think we both know that I’m not going to ruin the surprise…”

 

               “Why do I get the feeling I’m going to get this date whether you win or not?”

 

               “Ah, it’s seems you’re finally catching on.” Victor smirks and he has his head bent down, not paying the slightest bit of attention to where they are going now. He’s about to kiss Yuri when he feels someone places two hands on his back and _shove_.

 

               “Oi! You’re about to walk past the damn restaurant. Pay attention!”

 

               Victor stumbles and twists and it’s only the way he and Yuri are used to dancing and moving together by now that saves them both from tumbling face first into the sidewalk. Victor turns, mouth open and about to say something to Yurio that is probably not going to be very kind, but Yuri beats him to it.

 

               “Thanks, Yurio. You’re always looking out for us.” The smile on Yuri’s face could cut through steel and Yurio grouses under his breath and shuffles his shoulders before cursing in Russian and turning to step into the building they’ve arrived at.

 

               Who knew Yuri had such a petty side? Victor has seen glimpses of it here and there, but never full on.

 

               Was there ever going to come a time when he would know everything about his boyfriend? Victor sure hoped not.

 

~

 

               Yuri wasn’t sure when the conscious decision to hangout until day drinking turned into actual drinking. It might not even have been a _conscious_ decision all things considered, but he did know that it was six pm and all his friends were wasted.

 

               Yes, even Yurio who, despite his initial protests, had given in as soon as JJ had challenged him to some kind of tequila shot challenge.

 

               Yuri watches with detached interest as his friends move about the open-air patio on the rooftop restaurant. After leaving the more wintery feeling Australia and Japan, it’s an interesting feeling being back in a more temperate climate. Not to say that it’s summer weather in October per se, but they have been hovering in this sweet spot of about 25-26 degrees Celsius for the past week or so and the weather reports are showing much of the same into the next week.

 

               “For someone who was so concerned about drinking on a Tuesday, Yurio sure seems to be enjoying himself now.” Victor’s voice is slightly slurred by this point, although he doesn’t seem to be drunk to the point of stripping off his clothes again. Yuri is not entirely sure if he is grateful for this or not. “What’s the over/under on tonight being the night Yurio takes his pants off in public?”

 

               “Should I be concerned you have a hidden gambling addiction I need to be aware of?”

 

               “Of course not, my love!” Yuri cringes. They are playing music now, and the volume does seem to be steadily increasing as the sun goes down and evening begins to truly get underway, but it is not nearly loud enough to warrant Victor yelling directly into his ear. “I would never risk our money like that!”

 

               Our money? When did it become ‘our’ money?

 

               Yuri wants to posit the question aloud, but then thinks the better of it. Victor probably just didn’t know what he was saying. Even though Yuri had come to a final decision about what he wanted, they hadn’t actually talked about it yet. Hadn’t had time between Yuri’s meetings and spending time with Yuri’s mother and father.

 

               Or maybe he did know exactly what he was saying. Either way, still a conversation for when they are both sober and alone.

 

               “Victor!” Chris comes running over from whatever dark corner he’d disappeared to. Yuri hadn’t exactly been keeping track of where Chris and Phichit were, figuring if they wanted to be seen they would be and taking their absence as a sign that he did not want to know what they had been doing. Chris grabs Victor’s arm and tugs.

 

               The words coming out of Chris’ mouth are in French now and Victor throws his head back and laughs, responding to his friend in the same language. The words go right over Yuri’s head. If he wasn’t already struggling with trying to force himself to learn a foreign language on his own ridiculously tight timetable, he would be tempted to add French to his to do list. And this time he doesn’t have Phichit handy to start a conversation in Japanese to taunt them.

 

               Although, these days he’s been brushing off his rusty Thai when Phichit is around. Victor’s Japanese is still terrible, but since the conversation Yuri overheard Victor have with Yuri’s mother, his boyfriend had been trying a bit harder than usual and Yuri doesn’t want to run the risk of misjudging Victor’s exact level of comprehension.

 

               Chris is still tugging on Victor’s arm and saying something else that Yuri can’t translate. Victor is pulled out of his chair and then pauses, looking back at Yuri and saying something to Chris that gets the other man to let him go.

 

               “Phichit’s gone to the toilet and Chris wants to order another round of drinks for the table.” Victor explains. “I’m going to go help him carry them.”

 

               “Go ahead. I’ll hold down the fort.” Yuri waves for Victor to go, not surprised at all as Victor leans over to give him a quick kiss on the forehead before turning back to Chris and letting himself be drug away this time.

 

               For a brief moment he’s alone at the table. Yurio and Otabeck are at the bar and Yuri watches as Victor and Chris greet them cheerfully. Phichit is missing, presumably searching for a toilet. JJ and Isabella are alone on the dance floor, leaning against each other and swaying out of time with the music.

 

               Just as he realizes he hasn’t seen Sara in some time either, a chair scrapes against the ground and Yuri turns in time to see Sara drop down into the vacant seat Victor had left behind.

 

               “Hey, Yuri.” She is smiling and Yuri smiles back.

 

               “Hey.”

 

               This evening Sara has her long, dark hair braided and coiled into a knot at the crown of her head. A few tendrils have escaped and are brushing against the nape of her neck and her tanned skin is still glowing from three months spent laying out in the sun. Her eyes are still that deep, purple color, the kind that makes it feel as though she can look through your skin if she wanted to. If Yuri wasn’t dating Victor and was attracted to girls, he would have to say that she was beautiful.

 

               The silence is just a hair on the wrong side of awkward. Yuri makes a point of knowing everyone in the class well enough, but he’s never been particularly close to either Sara or her brother. She usually hung out more with Emil and Michele. Well, before the fight in Italy that was. Ever since then the twins had been keeping a cool distance and it was hard for everyone else not to notice. That was around the time she had started hanging with Isabella more and Yuri had lost contact since JJ was quite often on the fringes of their group anyway and his presence in any of their plans wasn’t guaranteed.

 

               So, he hadn’t spent a lot of time with Sara, definitely not alone in any case, and that made him feel self-conscious.

 

               But he can’t just sit here and say nothing until Victor comes back to rescue him from this non-conversation. That would be rude.

 

               “How have you been?” Yuri figures that question is innocent enough. It leaves the topic of the conversation open so Sara can choose where she wants to go with it.

 

               “I’ve been better.”

 

               Sara sighs and rests her elbows on the table, slumping down and staring up at Yuri from this new angle. If he didn’t already guess before, he is now certain she is drunk. The hairs on the back of his neck prickle and he has to resist the urge to look away and out across the patio in an attempt to see if any one of their friends might be on their way over to save him. Sara has that look on her face like she’s about to spill a secret and Yuri isn’t sure if he’s the best person to be hearing it right now.

 

               “Oh…” Now Yuri wishes he’d had at least one drink. He’d been sticking to water because opening the floodgates when Victor was drinking was like handling a lit candle and some gasoline in the same hand, but this conversation would be a whole lot easier with some liquid assistance. “I’m sorry to hear that?”

 

               “It’s fine. Nothing new, really.” Sara has her head pillowed in her arms, but she isn’t looking away. She staring at him as though she is waiting for something. “You’re really nice, you know. And not like fake nice the way some people are. You are really, genuinely nice. Victor’s lucky.”

 

               “Um… Thanks?” Yuri shifts his weight in his chair. Adjusts his glasses for something to do more than them actually needing the adjustment. Considers looking around the room to check the progress of Victor and Chris at the bar, decides against it. “You’re really nice, too.”

 

               “Am I?” Sara doesn’t seem to really want an answer to this question as she doesn’t give Yuri enough time to formulate a response. “Sometimes I think I am. Sometimes I think I’m not. I guess it’s just a matter of perspective versus the situation, isn’t it?”

 

               “I guess.” Yuri is having a hard time following where this is going. “In that case, I’m not always nice either.”

 

               “Probably.” Sara shrugs one elegant shoulder, but still does not look away. “No one is nice all the time. That would be exhausting. Sometimes you just have to be real and real isn’t always nice.”

 

               “Are you… Are you okay?” Yuri doesn’t want to ask the question. He knows how it makes him feel, after all. How sometimes his temper will flare when he hears those words and can’t help but feel inadequate. Like a burden.

 

               If Sara feels that way, she doesn’t show it.

 

               “I will be.” She lifts her head up from the table at last. “It’s hard. In the beginning. When you know you are doing something for someone else’s own good, but they don’t see it. Does it ever get easier, though? Every so often it feels like it does and then… Then it doesn’t and we’re back to where we were before.”

 

               Yuri doesn’t know what to do. He can feel the icy grip of panic leaving handprints as it crawls up his spine. He takes a deep breath. He can’t let it overwhelm him. Not now. Later, perhaps, when he’s alone or maybe when Victor is there to help hold him together, but not right now. Sara needs something. He doesn’t know what it is or if he can even give it to her, but he does know she needs it and he wants to help.

 

               Because he’s nice.

 

               Because, even if he doesn’t know the details, he knows the feeling. Understands what she’s going through just by the look in her eyes.

 

               “It will get better.” He wonders if Sara can sense his hesitancy. He doesn’t actually know what is wrong after all. It very well could be one of those things that don’t get better with time. If that’s the case is it better or worse to offer her false hope?

 

               He doesn’t get the chance to second guess himself any longer as Victor and Chris have returned after what must have only felt like an eternity. They have Yurio and Otabeck in tow and Phichit turns up not too long after.

 

               With the inflow of people back to their table, Sara perks up. She begins to joke and laugh with Otabeck, grabbing Isabella’s hand as the other girl returns from the dance floor and dragging her away from JJ’s side and off across the dance floor, slender body swaying with the music as she twirls and dips.

 

               Yuri feels Victor’s presence at his side. His boyfriend is less exuberant now, even though he is no less drunk. It would seem as though he is now much better at gauging Yuri’s moods now, even inebriated and he gives Yuri exactly what he is craving, but still isn’t quite sure how to ask for.

 

               He stays by his side.

 

~

 

               “You were quiet tonight.”

 

               It was that odd hour between one and two am where the old day was over, but the new day really hadn’t truly begun and Victor curled up in their shoved together double bed with Yuri’s back pressed against his chest and the soft movements of Yuri’s breath causing his ribs to rise and fall gently underneath Victor’s arm.

 

               Yuri squirmed a bit in Victor’s embrace before settling with a sigh and a nod of his head.

 

               “Anything you want to talk about?”

 

               Victor was getting used to this now. Used to giving Yuri the option instead of instantly pushing him for an answer. In return Yuri was getting better at giving him a response instead of putting him off. There were still times where it didn’t work, where the lines of communication broke down and Victor pushed too hard or Yuri caved too far. Maybe there always would be those times no matter how long they were together. Maybe that was just part of being human and in love.

 

               Whatever it was, it didn’t matter. Even when they missed the mark, those times weren’t at earth shattering as before. They fell back together much quicker than they fell apart now. Like magnets that were tuned to the same frequency. Drawn to each other even when the strongest of forces was trying to tear them apart.

 

               “I’m not sure.” The words were soft and Victor pulled back as Yuri rolled over in his arms, resting their foreheads together.

 

               “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

 

               “It’s not that.” Yuri took a deep breath as Victor let out the one he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. “I just don’t know if it’s my story to tell… Or even really what that story is.”

 

               “That doesn’t make sense.”

 

               “No, it doesn’t.”

 

               Another silence, this one with less tension. Victor reached up and ran a hand through Yuri’s hair, closing his eyes at the overwhelming softness of his boyfriend’s hair. Yuri hummed deep in his throat and shifted closer, placing a hand on the small of Victor’s back before slipping it under the hem of Victor’s sleep shirt and sliding it up and down the planes of his back.

 

               “Sara talked to me tonight.” Right when Victor had been able to give up and let the drag of sleep pull him under, hoping Yuri might be ready to talk in the morning if he didn’t want to do so right now, his boyfriend spoke. His words drew Victor’s consciousness back to the surface and he pushed down the dizzy feeling the alcohol he’s drank earlier was trying to wash over him. “She’s upset about something. Something to do with Michele I think. She didn’t say what, but I think she wanted me to help her.”

 

               A pause, and then…

 

               “Why would she have come to me?”

 

               Of all the questions Yuri could have asked…

 

               “Why wouldn’t she?” From Victor’s point of view Yuri’s question had an obvious answer. An answer that should have been so obvious the question shouldn’t have even been necessary in the first place. “You are the first person I would think to come to if I had a problem, and I’m not just saying that as your boyfriend. There’s something… Calming about you. I know you don’t see it, but there is. People can trust you. People can tell that you are so, so very strong, even when you don’t think you are.”

 

               “Oh.” Yuri was quiet again. Victor could practically here the gears whirring in his brain. Thoughts ticking over and pieces clicking into place. “They really think that?”

 

               “Yes.” Victor placed a kiss on the tip of Yuri’s nose. “They really think that. It’s true. I trust you.”

 

               “I trust you, too.”

 

               Those words felt like they had been aimed right at Victor’s center. They cut through skin, muscle, and bone. Stopped his heart and then shocked it back into beating in the space of a millisecond. He felt so impossibly warm. Like there was stardust in his veins. Like any other number of over the top metaphors and similes that his mushy romantic brain could conjure.

 

               Yuri never failed to surprise him.

 

               “I never want to let you go.”

 

               Victor didn’t know what had possessed him to say that. It wasn’t even tangentially related to their conversation. Had nothing to do with Sara or her brother or Yuri’s existential crisis. It had everything to do with Victor and how he _needed_ to say it. Needed Yuri to hear it and understand. Wanted to give something back to Yuri in return for everything he had given to Victor, even the things he hadn’t intended to give, but handed over anyway because Victor was loved and _trusted_.

 

               “Then don’t.” Yuri pulled back so they could look into each other’s eyes.

 

               In the moonlight coming in through the window above their bed, Yuri’s eyes were bright. The browns darker, the red undertones brighter. It was almost like they were glowing. The light from within battling against the moon, but instead of one winning over the other, they just melded together into something more intense.

 

               “I won’t. Not ever.”

 

               Yuri didn’t say anything, then. He didn’t need to. Sometimes there were no words that could accurately encompass a feeling, but Victor knew. Victor knew what he was saying even when he couldn’t find the words to say anything at all and he knew Yuri knew the same.

 

               No matter what happened, where they wanted to go. Where they ended up. It didn’t matter because they were going to have each other.

 

_Always._


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Thanks for all the kind responses! This chapter will pull back from the secondary characters a bit again and focus some more on the groundwork for the next level of Victor and Yuri's relationship.
> 
> ENJOY! ^_^

               October – El Salvador

 

               “Chris, I need your help.”

 

               Victor waited with his phone pressed to his ear for his friend’s response, glancing around to make sure no one had followed him. The mall was crowded, but he was fairly certain he didn’t see anyone he knew.

 

               “Victor? Are you okay? Are you lost again? Hold on, I think Yuri’s over with Phichit, I can go get him…”

 

               “No! Don’t get Yuri!” Victor quickly interrupted before Chris could grab anyone else’s attention. “I need your help. Not his. Definitely not his. In fact, don’t even tell Phichit where you’re going. Just meet me by the fountain out front?”

 

               “The south entrance?” Victor makes a noise in the affirmative in response to Chris’ question. “Fine, I’m on my way.”

 

               “Don’t let anyone follow you. Please, Chris. It’s important.”

 

               “Okay, okay. I won’t tell them where I’m going and I won’t let anyone follow.” Victor can practically see Chris grinning and shaking his head on the other end of the line. “See you in like five?”

 

               “I’ll be waiting.”

 

               Victor waited impatiently, sitting on the lip of the fountain and continually running his gaze over the strange faces in the crowd, trying to pick out a familiar one just in case he needed to duck away.

 

               It was closer to ten minutes than five by the time Chris showed up and Victor already had his phone in his hand to try calling his friend again when he caught sight of Chris’s bleached blonde tips and dark undercut.

 

               “Ah, I was starting to think you’d changed your mind and you were going to leave me hanging.” Victor gets to his feet quickly and gives Chris a one-armed hug before pulling back.

 

               “Sorry, it took me a minute to get Phichit and Yuri to let me go. Phichit has an uncanny knack for knowing when people are up to something.” Chris doesn’t seem too put out by this. In fact, he looks happy. “Are we up to something? I don’t want to think I’ve made my boyfriend suspicious for no reason.”

 

               “We are most certainly up to something.” Victor felt his prior excitement welling up again. “I have a very special purchase I want to make today and I need my best friend’s opinion before I make my choice.”

 

               “Oh?” Chris’ curiosity has clearly been piqued by Victor’s statement. “And what are we looking for, if I may be so bold as to ask?”

 

               “You’ll know when we get there.” Victor winked and led the way, Chris falling into to step at his side. “You weren’t followed, right? You’re sure neither Phichit nor Yuri saw which way you went?”

 

               “As sure as I can be. I went the wrong way and then popped up to the second floor and looped back around. They would have to be very dedicated to spying to have followed me like that.” They exchanged a quick look. “Okay, so Phichit could, theoretically, be that dedicated to spying. Yuri would slow him down, though.”

 

               “Unless you made him suspicious.” Victor pointed out. Yuri was polite enough not to openly spy on anyone, but he could be just as bad as his best friend when he thought Victor might be planning something that had to do with him. “You didn’t make Yuri suspicious, did you?”

 

               “Nope.” Chris sounded confident enough, but Victor picked up the pace just in case. It wouldn’t be long before Yuri started texting him to found out where he went in any case. He could only pretend to take a test back at the dorm for so long. “I’m assuming your paranoia means this outing does have something to do with Yuri.”

 

               “It does.”

 

               Chris hummed under his breath, muttering something in French Victor’ didn’t quite catch due to the way it was mumbled.

 

               It didn’t take long for them to make it to the destination Victor had in mind. To be on the safe side he’d found a little shop a few blocks from the main mall. What he was looking for would be easier to find back there, and there would certainly be more options, but there was also a higher chance of running into someone they knew. A higher chance of being seen and Victor did not want to be seen.

 

               Not yet.

 

               “ _Ah ha! I knew it!_ ” When Chris got excited he spoke French. Victor didn’t need the verbal cue to know what his friend thought of their destination, though. Both of their body language was reflecting the same thing. Wide grins, nervous tension held in the slope of their shoulders, eyes that sparkled with intent.

 

               Neither one of them had ever been good at pretending to be calm when they were not.

 

               As Victor held open the door to the jewelry shop so that Chis could step in before him, he definitely did not want to be calm at all.

 

               It was finally time.

 

~

 

               “ _But where am I supposed to keep them?_ ” Victor was keeping an eye on the table next to them where Phichit and Yuri were huddled over Yuri’s laptop, murmuring in quiet Japanese as they looked over something Mari had sent earlier in the day. There was a box burning a hole in Victor’s bag. His nerve endings felt like they were on fire. Every time Yuri would glance his way, Victor felt like time had frozen.

 

               _He knows_.

 

               But Yuri didn’t know. So, Victor would return his boyfriend’s smile or blow him a kiss just to see that adorable blush, and then Yuri would go back to his business and Victor would go back to his own.

 

               “ _Your room isn’t safe?_ ” Chris asks, pitching his voice low but casual. Victor shifts around and tries to resettle himself into his usually effortless sprawl. He had to act normal. Couldn’t give it away. This was going to be the best surprise of his life and he was not going to ruin it by being overeager and nervous. “ _Does he go through your things often_?”

 

               “ _Not often, no, but I can’t be there all the time._ ” Victor shrugs. It was true that Yuri didn’t go through Victor’s things without at least asking first, but there was always a chance. The chance that Yuri would need something and Victor wouldn’t be around to ask, or that he would wake up in the middle of the night and mistake Victor’s bag for his own… No, he couldn’t run that risk. “ _Can you keep them in your room?_ ”

 

               “ _My friend, you know I would. I would do anything for you, but the stars have at last aligned and gifted me with a month alone with my dearest one and my love can read me like an open book. He would not ruin your plans on purpose, but I am afraid he would be just as excited as we are._ ” Victor bit back a groan. He hadn’t thought of that. Hadn’t considered that Chris and Phichit were sharing a room this month so the most obvious hiding place might not be the best of choices. Hadn’t thought much further beyond making the purchase actually. He didn’t even know how he wanted the exchange to go other than some vague notion that it had to be special. “ _Is there someone else you can trust to hold onto it? Or, if you plan to do it soon, I can take it, but only if you plan to do it soon._ ”

 

               “ _I don’t know when…_ ” Victor really needed to get some of his impulsions under control. This was just like him to go into this half-cocked, but without a real follow up plan.

 

               Now he had two rings, two because he wanted Yuri to understand he was proposing a partnership and not some kind of claim, and he had no idea what to do with them. Didn’t have a place to hide them, didn’t have a place or a time to give them. Didn’t have much of anything really.

 

               That thought sobered him. Caused him to deflate a bit.

 

               “ _We’ll figure something out. First, we find a safe place for your package. Then, we work out a foolproof plan._ ” Chris claps Victor on the shoulder and grins. “ _There will be wedding bells in your future before you know it._ ”

 

               “ _Ah, Chris! You do always know what to do._ ” Victor let some of Chris’ good cheer buoy his mood. He tried to think through options in his mind. Somewhere he could hide the box in a bag where Yuri couldn’t find it or anyone who might give up Victor secret before it was time. There had to be someone other than Chris he could trust…

 

               “ _Hmmm… I think I have an idea. Can you cover for me for like half an hour?_ ” Victor asks, grabbing his bag by its strap and getting ready to move.

 

               Chris didn’t hesitate or ask for details. He simply nodded and Victor got to his feet in one fluid move, stretching his arms over his head and making a show of popping kinks out of his back. Yuri and Phichit looked away from their work at his exaggerated motions.

 

               “Are you okay, Victor?” Yuri sounds concerned and Victor gives him his brightest smile, hoping to throw him off the scent. Hoping to instill the feeling that there really isn’t anything wrong. Yuri can be perceptive at times, almost too perceptive, but Victor’s mask seems to work well enough. The pinch of skin between Yuri’s eyes relaxes and some of the tension that had coiled between his shoulder blades eased.

 

               “I’m fine. I just forgot that I left Yurio’s French textbook back at the dorm. It’s Chris’ turn to do the next project so he’s going to need it.” It’s not a complete lie. It is Chris’ turn to do Yurio’s homework. “I should go get it.”

 

               “Can’t you get it later? We’re supposed to meet Guang Hong, Leo, and Seung-Gil for dinner in like an hour.” Of course, Phichit would remember their social engagements more than their schoolwork schedule. “By the time you get back, Chris will have barely enough time to get anything accomplished.”

 

               “We can go with you.” Yuri offers, ever the peacemaker. “It might be easier to meet everyone else at the dorm instead of here anyway. Phichit and I are done with what we can do today. Give us five minutes and we can all go?”

 

               Well, this was going to be difficult to worm his way out of.

 

               “Phichit, my dear, you don’t remember that you promised to help me shop for an outfit for Otabeck’s birthday at the end of the month today?” Chris pulled out his best pout and Victor mentally crossed his fingers. Chris always had been quicker on his feet than Victor was. “And I don’t need to see inside Yuri’s suitcase to know that he would benefit from your impeccable taste as well. Let Victor go back and we can go shopping. It’ll probably be late once dinner is over and I doubt I’ll be in the mood to go back to Victor and Yuri’s room to get the textbook then, _my darling one_.”

 

               “Fair point.” Phichit responds with a giggle. From what Victor can tell, neither are looking at him any differently than usual.

 

               To be safe, Victor grabs his bag and walks around to where Yuri is still seated. When Yuri smiles up at him then, so innocent and trusting and happy, it takes every ounce of his willpower not to just sink to one knee then and there. But he doesn’t. He holds it in.

 

               It has to be perfect.

 

               Instead, he reaches out and runs his thumb gently along Yuri’s cheekbone. When Yuri leans into the touch, he bends over and kisses him soundly on the mouth, lingering for a few seconds before pulling back. It feels like there is a lead weight in his bag. Like there’s a neon sign blinking across his forehead.

 

               Yuri doesn’t notice anything.

 

               Victor exchanges pleasant goodbyes and promises to be back long before the others arrive. He strides away with steps that are filled with a purpose. Not too hasty, but confident and determined. Like he has somewhere he needs to be, but that it’s not inherently urgent he gets there.

 

               As soon as he turns the corner and is out of sight, he runs.

 

~

 

               “ **Alright, I’m here. What do you want?** ”

 

               Yurio met him in front of the dorm. Victor had been worried the younger Russian wouldn’t show. He honestly hadn’t expected to get a response to his frantic texting at all, but there he was, scowling and looking less than amused perhaps, but there all the same.

 

               “ **I need to ask you to do a major favor**.” Victor pauses, waiting for Yurio to immediately shut him down. He doesn’t. He just growls and waves his hand for Victor to continue. “ **Can you hold onto something for me? Keep it safe until I need it again? It’s important. Very important. If it wasn’t I wouldn’t ask.** ”

 

               “ **I don’t see why not. What is it?** ” This was going much better than Victor had anticipated it would.

 

               “ **Can we go up to your room first?** ” Victor looks around at the students coming and going on either side of them. He doesn’t recognize anyone at first glance, but that doesn’t mean one of their classmates or friends won’t walk up at any moment. He just can’t take the risk. “ **I’ll show you there.** ”

 

               Yurio looks like he might want to argue, but whatever good mood he’s in seems to stop him before he gets the words out. Instead, he shrugs, turning around to go back inside without waiting to see if Victor is actually following him.

 

               He waits until they are in Yurio’s room before he speaks again.

 

               “ **Who are you rooming with?** ” Victor asks. He is suddenly aware of the fact that he doesn’t actually know. He hadn’t been there when everyone else had gotten their room assignments for this leg of the trip.

 

               “ **Dunno. Some Irish kid. He’s never around. I think he’s scared of me.** ” Yurio doesn’t seem upset that someone might be scared of him to the point of avoiding him. Of course, this can only help Victor. The fewer people that come in and out of his room, the better. “ **What the fuck do you want, Vitya? I’m getting tired of humoring you.** ”

 

               Before answering, Victor reaches into his bag and pulls out the black box within, holding it in his cupped hands with reverent care. “ **I need you to hide this. Make sure Yuri doesn’t see. At least until I’m ready to give it to him.** ”

 

               Out of all the reactions he would have expected from Yurio, he had not thought a gentle shake of his head and a soft smile would have been one.

 

               “ **About damn time you got your shit together.** ” Yurio held out his hand in order for Victor to deposit the box there. “ **I’ll keep an eye on this. You can count on me.** ”

 

               “ **Thank you, Yura.** ” There are several questions Victor wants to ask. Logically he knows that Yurio likes him well enough, and he like Yurio well enough in return. Enough so that he trusts Yurio will hold up his end of the bargain and keep the rings safe until Victor is ready to use them.

 

               Even though there are questions, Victor doesn’t ask them.

 

               “ **What finally kicked your ass into gear? Did something happen in Japan?** ” Yurio asks as he turns and walks across the room, grabbing a fluffy, purple sweater from off his bed and carefully wrapping Victor’s box in it before opening one of the drawers to his desk and placing it softly inside.

 

               “ **Nothing specific.** ” That is definitely a lie. Victor knows exactly what happened in Japan that pushed him down this path at last. Remembers a cozy kitchen, the smell of a meal made by hand, and Yuri’s mother welcoming him into their family as though he had always belonged there. “ **It wasn’t just Japan. It was a combination of different things.** ”

 

               That part is true. It was every tiny piece of the puzzle that Victor had gathered from the moment he had met Yuri. It was grabbing that last puzzle piece the other night when he’d held Yuri in his arms and realized Yuri didn’t just love him. That he trusted Victor. Until that moment, he hadn’t even known that love and trust were two different things. He’d thought they were intrinsically linked together. That you couldn’t have one without the other.

 

               He had been wrong.

 

               It was knowing that the puzzle had been put together and had been waiting for him to understand this before the picture had snapped into clarity and he could see the route he needed to take. Seeing that picture, the future he would have with Yuri once this last step was taken, had drawn him into action.

 

               He was done waiting. The time was coming soon. This was just the first step in order to be ready to make his move once it had finally arrived.

 

               “ **For what it’s worth, I thought you would have done this ages ago. Or that he would have.** ” The rings stashed away safely, Yurio turns back to Victor and crosses his arms over his chest, leaning his hips back against the closed drawer. “ **Anyone who is unfortunate enough to have to spend more than a minute with the two of you can see how nauseatingly perfect you are for each other. He makes you… Less annoying. And you make him less of a stuttering mess.** ”

 

               “ **You’re good for each other.** ”

 

               “ **Thank you, Yura. For everything.** ” Victor doesn’t think or give Yurio a chance to see him coming and pull away. He just moves, throwing his arms out and drawing Yurio into a crushing hug, tightening his grip as Yurio start to hiss and kick and struggle.

 

               “ **Oi! Let me go you fucking old man!** ” Victor grins, but doesn’t let go. If Yurio really wanted to get away, he could. The younger boy was strong, flexible, and not afraid of hurting Victor in the slightest. “ **Victor, I swear to god if you do not let me go in the next five seconds, they are never going to find your body.** ”

 

               Victor releases him, knowing better than to test the other man’s patience right then.

 

               Yuri shuffles on his feet awkwardly and Victor lets him collect himself, preparing just in case the other Russian goes into a rage.

 

               He doesn’t.

 

               “ **Come on. Let’s get you back to your idiot before he starts to think something is up.** ”

 

               And if there is an extra spring in Victor’s step as they go, neither of them comment on it.

 

~

 

               “Something is up. I can feel it.”

 

               “Phichit, you always think something is up.” Yuri sighed and shot his best friend a look that he hopes conveyed his frustration with the sudden change in conversation topic. One minute they had been discussing business and Phichit’s plans for their social media campaign once the Sapporo hotel was ready to open, and then the next they were talking about Victor and what he may or may not be planning. “You always think something is up and then it turns out that nothing is.”

 

               “This time I’m sure. One hundred percent.” Phichit swivels his head from side to side, but they are alone in the common area of the dorm for now. “He has his ‘I’m planning something big’ face on.”

 

               “You mean the same face you thought he had on back in Italy? Or the United Kingdom, or when you swore he was going to propose to me when he took me on that weekend getaway to Brisbane? That face?” Yuri isn’t surprised when Phichit just waves a hand in dismissal. “By your count I should be engaged about twenty times over by now.”

 

               “Hey, nothing is stopping you from doing the deed yourself.” Sometimes Yuri loved it when Phichit was blunt and to the point. This was not one of those times. “But it doesn’t matter. Because this time I’m right.”

 

               “And those other times were…?”

 

               “Practice.” Phichit states with confidence. “I was just testing you. Making sure you were paying attention. I’m definitely right this time.”

 

               “How do you know?” Yuri isn’t sure which option he likes more right now. The option where Phichit is correct or the option where Phichit is wrong again. “I’m not going to believe a word you say unless you have compelling proof this time around.”

 

               “He’s acting sketchy, for one.”

 

               Yuri can’t help but laugh at that. “He acts sketchy all the time. It’s kind of part of who he is.”

 

               “He keeps running off alone all the time.”

 

               “He can be flighty. That’s not a new thing.” Yuri counters. Even though Victor usually stayed fairly glued to Yuri’s side for the most part, it was not unheard of for him to go off on his own from time to time. Sometimes it ended in a surprise for Yuri. Sometimes it didn’t and Yuri never actually found out what Victor go up to when he wasn’t around. Just because Victor might be planning a surprise didn’t mean he was planning _that_ surprise. “Sorry, Phichit, you’re going to have to do better than that.”

 

               “He’s suspiciously close with Chris again.”

 

               “Like how I’m suspiciously close with you right now?”

 

               “No.” Phichit frowns. Yuri is almost certain the Thai man is resisting the urge to reach out to grab him by the shoulders in order to shake some sense into him. Not that Yuri thinks he needs more sense. If anything, the roles there should be reversed. Yuri is seeing plenty of sense where Phichit is chasing nonsense again. “Like how they were before you and Victor starting dating. Sitting in corners and giggling in French when they think you might be close enough to hear them talking about you and how Victor planned to sweep you off your feet.”

 

               “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we tend to do that, too.” Yuri pushes down the mixture of hope and panic that is fluttering underneath his ribs harder and harder the longer this conversation goes on. No, Victor can’t be planning what Phichit thinks he’s planning. Yuri isn’t ready yet. There are still things he needs to do. Preparations that are only halfway completed. “We’re speaking in Thai instead of Japanese these days, but it still amounts to the same thing.”

 

               “Humor me. Let’s say this is it. The big moment.” Phichit leans forward, eyes sparkling. “What would you say if he asks? And I want a real answer this time. No putting me off like you always do.”

 

               “I would say ‘yes’. Obviously.”

 

               Maybe it should scare him, how there isn’t any hesitation before he says this. The minute ball of anxiety that sits at the base of his brain like a pebble lodged into the inner lining of his shoe quivers and threatens to roll forward. It doesn’t, though, and that should probably scare him, too.

 

               But it doesn’t. The anxiety stays put, he doesn’t hesitate, and he tells the truth.

 

               Phichit looks shocked.

 

               “Wow… Oh, okay… I thought it would be harder to get you to admit it.” Phichit bites his lips, scans the empty common area one more time and leans forward so they are whispering. “I’m just messing with you. I don’t know that there’s anything up. I thought you would banter back and forth with me again before refusing to commit to an answer like you always do.”

 

               “Sorry to disappoint you.” Yuri tries to turn back to the tablet in front of him, acting as though his heart isn’t beating at what must be a million times per second. “For what it’s worth, if he doesn’t beat me to the punch, I _am_ going to do it myself soon. I just have some things I need to get in order first. Business things. We still haven’t discussed future living arrangements, so I’d like to make sure there are a few options on the table for when that time comes.”

 

               “Who are you and what have you done with Yuri Katsuki?” Yuri is sure Phichit is joking, so he simply grunts in response, hoping Phichit will get the clue and change the subject. True to form, he does not. “Seriously. Yuri. This is big. You look totally serious right now.”

 

               “That might be because I am serious.” Yuri gives up trying act normal.  He turns to look his friend in the eye. “I’ve already decided. I’m going to marry him. You know, if he’ll have me, of course. I don’t want to assume…”

 

               “That man has been head over heels in love with you from the moment he met you. Feel free to assume away.” Phichit lunges forward and wraps Yuri in a firm hug. Yuri returns the gesture. “I’m so proud of you. And happy. Definitely happy.”

 

               “Nothing has been done yet. Might not get done for some time.” Yuri pulls back. There is an ache in his jaw that he’s not used to. He has been smiling a lot more than he ever has before this past week. “I’ll let you know the second something happens, I promise.”

 

               Yuri’s phone rings, bringing them out of their moment and back into the present. He glances down and sees Victor’s name across the caller ID.

 

               It barely has time to finish the first bars of the corny Russian pop song Victor had set up to be own ringtone before Yuri answers.

 

               “Hello, my darling one! Grab Phichit and meet us at the place down the road. You know the one. Chris and I are starving!”

 

               “We’re hungry, too. See you in a few?”

 

               “I can’t wait!”

 

~

 

               Yuri had shown up at the restaurant in question with Phichit in tow, but Chris had been quick to grab his own boyfriend and take off. Victor wasn’t sure why since Chris knew he wasn’t ready to go through with his grand plans yet, but he supposed the other man had his reasons.

 

               They settle in at a table towards the back of the room. A waiter takes their drink orders and leaves them with a pair of menus in English upon their request.

 

               Yuri looks nice this evening. Not that Yuri didn’t always look nice, it just that there was something different about him tonight. Something that made him glow from the inside out. Victor wasn’t sure what it was, but he did know he liked it.

 

               Yuri was in a blue cardigan that had been pulled over a white button up with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows and revealing the tanned flesh of his forearms. His jeans were one of his looser pairs, but they still hugged his thighs in all the right ways. He had his glasses on as he always did, but his hair was pushed back, a gelled back a bit, but the gel was either old and losing its hold or he hadn’t put that much in there to begin with because strands of his bangs were starting to fall to gravity’s pull and trace across his forehead.

 

               How was Victor supposed to think coherently when he had somehow managed to get the most gorgeous man in the world to fall in love with him?

 

               The spend the time it takes for the waiter to return with their drinks, water for Yuri and some kind of fruit juice for Victor, perusing the menu and deciding what they want to eat. They then spend the time it takes for the waiter to return with their food chatting about school and their assignments.

 

               “What do you think Chris and Phichit are up to?” Yuri is the one who asks this question. Victor supposes it’s a fair once, since he’d been with Chris before Yuri and Phichit had shown up and it was the Swiss man who had brought up the change in plans for their evenings.

 

               “I’m not sure.” Victor admits. “Chris didn’t say.”

 

               Some other time Victor would assume Chris might be trying to give Victor his opening to ask Yuri that ever so important question that is now constantly on the tip of his tongue, but he feels as though that’s not the real reason. Chris would know Victor didn’t even have the rings on his person right then. Didn’t even know where they were since Victor hadn’t thought to tell him and he hadn’t thought to ask.

 

               “Oh, well, if it’s important one or both of them will tell us about it later.” Yuri takes a bite of his food. “I love this place. Thanks for suggesting it again, Victor.”

 

               “Why do you do that?” Victor asks.

 

               “Do what?”

 

               “Call me Victor. Why do you do that?”

 

               Yuri is confused. Victor can tell by the way his brows furrow and his bottom lip slips in between his teeth.

 

               “Because it’s your name?”

 

               Alright, Victor obviously isn’t being clear enough. He elaborates.

 

               “I know it’s my name, but I’ve told you before you can call me Vitya.” Yuri still looks confused, so Victor tries again. “You only call me Vitya in private. Whenever we’re in public you still call me Victor. It’s not that I’m offended or anything. I just was curious to know why.”

 

               “Oh!” Victor watches as understanding dawns on his boyfriend and Yuri widens his eyes in surprise. “Oh, um, I didn’t know I was supposed to call you Vitya in public. I thought it was something… Something for personal times. Was I wrong? Did I not do it right?”

 

               “You didn’t do anything wrong per se.” Victor is quick to reassure Yuri before he can try to doubt himself. “It’s just… Okay, maybe I didn’t explain diminutives properly before.”

 

               “They’re not like nicknames are they? I’m sorry. I should have done more research. I didn’t mean to offend you.” To be honest, Victor is a bit taken off guard by the fact that Yuri didn’t bother to research any further than what Victor had told him.

 

               “Yuri, I promise you haven’t done anything to offend me. Please don’t misunderstand my question.” Victor can tell Yuri is about to start apologizing again, so he cuts him off before he can start. “Let me start from scratch, okay?”

 

               “Okay…”

 

               “Alright…” Victor tries to think of where to begin and Yuri wait patiently, if with a little more fidgeting than usual. “So, in Russia we have formal names and informal names based on how familiar we are with the person we are speaking with.”

 

               “Like the honorifics we use in Japan.” Yuri states and Victor nods.

 

               “Yes, like that. Only, it’s a bit different. I know you don’t use middle names in your culture, and we don’t use them in ours either. We use what we call patronyms. So, my full name, in formal situations, would be Victor Maximovich Nikiforov. Maximovich from Maxim, my father. If we were meeting for the first time, or we were business acquaintances that didn’t know each other very well, I would be Victor, or Victor Maximovich if we were trying to be stuffy and traditional.”

 

               “Everyone else, like friends and family, they would call me by my diminutive. There are a few options for Victor, but I’m partial to Vitya, so that’s what everyone back home calls me.” Yuri is listening with rapt attention, absorbing every word. “It’s not a nickname, so much as just being an informal way to address me. It wouldn’t change being in public versus private, although there are some even more broken down diminutives that can be used by very special people in private… I’m not super fond of any of those, though. That’s why I asked. Because usually once I’ve told someone I’m fine with them using the diminutive, they wouldn’t usually change back and forth unless they were like super mad at me and trying to make a point. My mother does that sometimes… It’s how I know she means business and I should stop playing around.”

 

               “That makes sense.” Yuri paused and Victor could tell he was taking a moment to run over everything he’d just learned. “Okay, so it’s like when I call Yuko, Yuko-chan, only if I got to the point where we were comfortable with dropping the ‘chan’, I would never change back.”

 

               “Yes, that sounds about right.” Victor was still a little shaky on the Japanese honorifics system, but that sounded like a fair enough approximation of what he’d just explained. “Does that happen? In Japan? Where you drop the honorific and never add it back.”

 

               “No, not really.” Yuri shrugs. “I wasn’t really thinking about it, but that’s probably what I was doing. Applying the Russian styling to Japanese honorifics. So, on my end, I would have called you Victor-san when we first met. As a sign of respect for someone I didn’t know, but I didn’t do that because I was trying to be more Western. You know, stick out less when we left Japan. If I’d done it the correct way for my culture, once I got close enough to you, I would have asked you to drop whatever honorific we were using and you would have asked me to do the same, but only in private. I’m… I’m not super comfortable with doing it in public, yet. That’s kind of a personal choice, really. I guess I was superimposing that system onto your diminutive. Thinking it was something special I was supposed to call you when we were alone to let you know how deeply I cared for you and how comfortable I was around you.”

 

               “I like that.” And he means it. Something had flashed through him at the thought of Yuri showing his affection through his choice of what name to use. That he’d been subconsciously showing his love for Victor the whole time, even if Victor hadn’t had the context to know that’s what he was doing. “I really like that. Don’t change it.”

 

               “Are you sure…?”

 

               “Yes, I’m sure.” Victor says firmly. “I like the thought of it meaning something special to you. Something you want to share with me and me only.”

 

               “You do?” Yuri sounds pleased. Victor returns his shy smile with a bright one of his own. “Okay. If that’s what you want.”

 

               “Do you want a nickname or a diminutive? In Russian you would be Yura or Yurotchka…”

 

               “Oh, no, you’re fine.” Yuri flushes. “Actually… I like when you… When you call me other things…”

 

               “Other things?” Victor raises an eyebrow and Yuri’s bush deepens. “You mean like ‘my darling’ or ‘my love’?”

 

               “Y-yes.” Yuri swallows hard. “I mean, yes. I like that.”

 

               “I think that can be arranged, my dearest.”

 

               “Thank you… Vitya.”


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Hmm... I feel like it's time for Victor's parents to make return, don't you? Also, Proposal planning with Victor and Chris!
> 
> Also, fun fact of the day, the incident with the mix up in buying tickets for a showing in the wrong language actually happened to me when I was visiting El Salvador with a friend serval years ago. ^_^

               October – El Salvador

 

               It’s been a week since Victor had bought the rings and hidden them with Yurio. A whole week and he wasn’t any closer to deciding what to do about actually putting them to use.

 

               It wasn’t that he didn’t have any ideas. The problem was that he had _too many_ ideas.

 

               “Don’t you think a hot air balloon might be a little much? What if he’s afraid of heights?” Victor chewed on his bottom lip as he scrolled through a list of ’10 Best Proposals’ on his computer. Across the table Chris merely shrugged, deep in his own research.

 

               Chris had been trying to help him by filtering out the most ridiculous things Victor came up with, but their partnership sometimes had the opposite effect, causing them to chase something utterly insane for an hour before they both recognized that hiring a pair of white elephants to carry them through the streets, while definitely a grand gesture, was a logistical nightmare and also more likely to send Yuri rightfully running the opposite direction.

 

               Needless to say, their distraction was causing this process to drag out exponentially.

 

               “Well, you nixed the flash mob idea yesterday… A hot air balloon would be more private, but still fancy.” Chris pointed out. “Shouldn’t you know if he’s afraid of heights by now?”

 

               “I don’t think he is.” Victor thought for a second. “He didn't seem put off by any of the higher rides when we went to that amusement park… Oh! There’s an idea. He liked that date. What about Disneyland? That’s a place people get engaged, right?”

 

               “I thought you wanted it to be special. I’d wager at least fifteen other couples will be doing the same thing not even twenty meters from you if you choose to do it there.” Victor groaned and ran his hands through his hair. Deciding to spend the rest of his life with Yuri had been easy compared to this. Shouldn’t it be the other way around? “Is there something or somewhere personal you can think of? Maybe a place the two of you really made a connection with?”

 

               “Only half the world.”

 

               “Ah, the downside of falling in love on an international excursion. Too many places to pick from.” Chris taps a finger against his chin. “Alright. Back to square one. What does Yuri like?”

 

               “He likes a lot of things.” For what felt like the thousandth time just that day, Victor ran through his mental list of all the things, no matter how small, Yuri had seemed to enjoy over the past seven and a half months. “Dogs, the color blue, dancing, food… All kinds of food really. Me?”

 

               “Well, by this point, I should hope he likes you. If he doesn't, he certainly has an odd way of showing it. Doesn’t he like the beach? There are beaches a few hours away. You could go there.”

 

               “I think the beach is more of a _me_ thing. Not that he doesn’t like it, too…”

 

               “Are you _sure_ we can’t ask Phichit for help? I really don’t think he’d give away the secret.” Chris shuts his laptop with a loud sigh. “At least, not on purpose.”

 

               “I know he wouldn’t do it on purpose…” Victor wasn’t sure why he was so hesitant to bring Phichit into their planning sessions. Chris had a point, other than Victor himself, there was no one there that knew Yuri as well as Phichit did. Perhaps that was exactly why. Asking for help from Phichit was too much like being given the answer. Too much like cheating when this was a test Victor needed to pass on his own. “Why is this so _hard_? I feel like there’s an obvious answer. Something we’re overlooking.”

 

               “Maybe we’re just thinking too hard. We could use a break. Stretch our legs. Clear out our brains before they overload.” Victor had to admit that Chris might have a point. They had been locked away in Yuri and Victor’s dorm room for two hours just that morning alone. “You said Yuri and Yurio were going to be working with Yurio’s ballet instructor alone today. When will they be done?”

 

               “Should be any minute now.” Victor glanced down to the righthand corner of the screen in front of him to check the time. “Yes, I’m sure we’ll be hearing from them in the next fifteen minutes or so, if not sooner.”

 

               “Let me text Phichit. Guang Hong was using him as a model for a photo shoot somewhere this morning. If they’re done let’s all get together for lunch.” Chris grabbed his phone and busied himself with typing out a message to his own boyfriend. “Maybe seeing Yuri will shake something loose.”

 

               “It definitely can’t hurt.” Victor is quick to agree. Whenever his thoughts starting buzzing around like a hive of angry hornets Yuri’s presence was often more than enough to calm him and bring him back to even ground. “Okay, new plan. We find the boyfriends, get some fresh air, and then reconvene at a time and place yet to be determined.”

 

               “Plan seconded and approved.” Chris bounces to his feet and Victor stows his computer and does the same. “Phichit says to meet them at that bar and grill JJ found.”

 

               “Perfect.” Victor’s phone buzzes and he knows without having to look that it will be Yuri letting him know that they are done with Yurio’s practice. He unlocks the screen and responds with the correct location for them to meet at. “Let’s go.”

 

~

 

               “How did it go today?” Victor asks as Yuri drops down into the empty chair at his side. Around them their friends are settling in, greeting each other as they pass around menus and make small talk. As always, Victor’s main focus is on Yuri first and the rest second.

 

               “It went well.” Yuri places a quick kiss on Victor’s cheek and then accepts the strawberry lemonade Victor had ordered for him as he’d waited. “Lilia liked the changes you made in the first movement.”

 

               “Well, it made sense. The music there is floaty, not quite human. Sharp movements actually give the piece as sense of disconnect to draw attention to that otherworldly feeling.” Victor passes his boyfriend a menu, already knowing what he wants to order since he and Chris had been the first to arrive. “I’m glad she liked it, though. I think Chris and I have sorted through Yurio’s midterm project. I should be free more often to help going forward.”

 

               “That’s good! I’ve missed spending time at the studio with you. Even with Yurio’s unique brand of chaperoning.” Victor returned Yuri’s laugh with a chuckle of his own, letting his words wash over him and warm him to his very core.

 

               “I’ve missed being there, too.” Victor admitted. There were few things in life he liked more than watching Yuri dance or getting the chance to dance with him. “Let’s go tomorrow, without Yurio.”

 

               Victor isn’t sure what makes him say that. He knows he’s being impulsive again, but he can’t help it. Now that he has the image of Yuri twisting and twirling and leaping through the air, he can’t get it out of his mind. Can’t get the feel of the muscles at Yuri’s waist flexing and stretching underneath his palm to stop haunting him. It’s like he can feel Yuri’s weight against him as they push and pull against each other to the time of the music.

 

               “Yuri! Victor!” Phichit’s bright voice stops either of them from saying anything further. “There’s supposed to be some kind of big movie premier tonight. Leo got the group tickets. Do you guys want to come?”

 

               “I don’t see why not.” Yuri answers for them as Victor is still slightly distracted. “What movie?”

 

               “I don’t know.” Phichit looks down towards the end of the table where Leo is in deep conversation with JJ. “Hey, Leo! What movie are we going to see?”

 

               “I don’t know.” Leo calls back. “Something American. An action movie, I think? In any case, I got tickets for the showing in English.”

 

               “An American action movie.” Chris smirks. “Guaranteed explosions. I’m in.”

 

               Victor can tell his friend is being sarcastic. The movie doesn’t sound like it’s going to be Victor’s cup of tea either, but he doesn’t have any better plans and it would be rude to back out now.

              

               “Oh, stop.” Yuri shushes Chris with a wave of his hand. “He’s excited about getting to go home in a few weeks. Besides, the movie might not end up to be all bad. It could be a good thing to watch something that isn’t a cheesy romance movie for a change.”

 

               “How am I not surprised that you two idiots are suckers for corny romances?” Yurio snipes from his own seat. “Pathetic.”

 

               “You cried in the middle of Homeward Bound.” Victor cried out in pain as Yurio’s foot connected with his knee under the table. “Ow! Fuck!”

 

               “You deserved it.” Yurio huffed, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring down his nose at where Victor had drawn his leg up into his chair and was cradling his aching knee against his chest. “ **I told you to never speak of that again**.”

 

               “Yuri… Are you just going to let him kick me like that?”

 

               “He did warn you before not to bring it up again.” Victor whined low in his throat, allowing the pinprick of tears in the corner of his eyes to become a bit more prominent in a bid for sympathy. He could see Yuri sway just enough to reach out and pat Victor softly on his injured knee. “Do you need ice?”

 

               “No.” Victor didn’t need ice. Yurio hadn’t kicked him that hard, mostly just enough to give him a quick shock and maybe a subdued bruise. “I wouldn’t say ‘no’ if you wanted to kiss it to make it better.”

 

               “Victor!” Yuri’s entire face turned red, the flush creeping down his neck as well this time. “You’re incorrigible.”

 

               “Ah, yes, but you love me for it anyway.” Victor let his leg drop back down under the table and reached out to take Yuri’s hand in his. Yuri didn’t protest. He just rolled his eyes and turned back to where Phichit was sitting on his other side and dove into the conversation he was having with Guang Hong.

 

               From across the table Yurio raised a blonde eyebrow and stared. Challenging him. Almost as though he were trying to say ‘What are you waiting for?’.

 

               What was he waiting for indeed?

 

~

 

               It turned out there had been a mistake when Leo had gotten the tickets for the movie premier. Instead of ending up in the theater with Spanish subtitles and the original English audio intact, they found themselves at the showing of the Spanish dubbed version of the film. No subtitles and only two people in the whole group that spoke the language enough to understand exactly what was happening.

 

               Only two people in the whole group who understood the language, and Victor and Yuri weren’t sitting anywhere near either of them.

 

               Chris hadn’t been wrong. There were a lot of explosions and fight sequences. A total of three car chases. Why? Victor didn’t know. He wasn’t entirely sure knowing the plot would have helped. There was no situation he could think of that required the main characters to be chased in by speeding vehicles a total of three times in two and a half hours, but he supposed there could have been.

 

               It was fun, in way, though. Phichit and Chris were beside them and Yurio and Otabeck had taken up seats in the row behind and they spent the whole time laughing and making up their own dialogue, Yurio rightfully pointing out that whatever they came up with was probably better than the real thing.

 

               The mood was still high as they left, the group splitting up in front of the theater as a group, led by Phichit and Chris went off to find something else to do, while the rest decided to turn in for the evening.

 

               Victor and Yuri were part of the group that went back to the dorm. Yuri claiming he had a headache and Victor because at two in the morning here, it would be going on eleven back in St. Petersburg and he’d promised his parents he would try to call today. It had been a few weeks since he’d been able to speak with them for more than a few minutes at a time and he was finding that he was actually missing them more than he had anticipated.

 

               “How’s your head, darling?” Victor asked as he grabbed his computer and set about plugging in the charger cord and setting up everything he would need on the bed. “Is the medicine helping?”

 

               “It’s trying to.” Yuri had taken something for the ache in his head before they had left the theater. Pulling a small bottle of pain relievers from out of his bag. Prepared as ever. “I think I’m going to take a quick shower if that’s okay? It might help give the medication more time to work and you can have some time to talk to your parents alone…”

 

               “Good idea.” Victor watched as Yuri moved around the room, digging in drawers and the closet before grabbing another pair of jeans and a plain blue t-shirt to change into once he was done. “You’ll let me know if you need anything.”

 

               “Of course, Vitya.” Yuri paused by the bed and they exchanged a quick kiss before Yuri turned to go, closing the door to the bathroom behind him.

 

               Victor lifted his hand and ran his fingertips over his lips. He still couldn’t believe it sometimes. Still couldn’t believe that they were so comfortable that Yuri could do something like. Just give him a kiss as though it was just another part of their routine. In a way, Victor supposed it was. It was like looking in through a window that showed him a view of the rest of his life. Only, in the future, there wouldn’t be dorm bed tied together or cardboard box nightstands. There wouldn’t be cheap linoleum flooring that was always so cold on their bare feet in the mornings or scratchy school issued blankets and thin pillows.

 

               One day they were going to have their own space. Somewhere that was more than just a bedroom and a bath with a tiny shower. There would be a kitchen where they could cook. A living area that they would be able to decorate with something more permanent than class schedules and a few pictures tacked to the walls. A bedroom that had more space and a thick carpet. A bathroom that included a deep tub for soaking as well as a shower that was barely large enough for one person at a time, much less two.

 

               A place they could make their own.

 

               Victor wasn’t sure where that place was going to be on the map. He was confident they would figure that step out when it came to them. But the physical location didn’t matter much to him anyway. Home was wherever Yuri was now. Had been for a long time. The logistics of the thing weren't of any concern to him at all.

 

               There was a chime from his phone and Victor pulled himself out of his thoughts. In the background was the muted sounds of Yuri’s shower as he booted up his computer and allowed for the Skype window to pull up. He watched the icon for his mother’s account as it changed from grey to green and then there was a pop-up with her picture and he quickly accepted the call.

 

               The screen wavers as the picture darkens, then brightens, and then finally settles into something he can see. His mother looks to be seated in their breakfast nook, his father at her side. They are bickering in quiet Russian. Irina focused on her husband’s face and gesturing back and forth between themselves and the screen with a graceful hand.

 

               “ **Are you sure the connection is good? Last time we tried to talk to him the call dropped midway through, Maxsimka. How do you know it won’t happen again…? Ah! Vitya!** ” Irina had caught sight of Victor’s image on their end of the connection and dropped her argument instantly in favor of smiling at him and waving. “ **It has been too long since we have seen your face! Are you well? How is Yuri? Is he there?** ”

 

               “ **He’s in the shower, Mama. He’ll be out soon.** ” Victor felt the swell of pride that his mother cared enough about Yuri to ask after his wellbeing even though they’d only had a few interactions, most of which had been through computer screens. “ **I’m well. We’re all well.”**

**“Good to hear!** ” Irina chirped as she clapped her hands together. “ **Are your classes going well? How is the weather? A fair bit warmer than ours I would hope. It seems we are in for another rough winter. Have you had enough time to get out and see everything? They are not keeping you locked away in a dour classroom, are they?”**

**“Irinka, give the boy enough time to answer you**.” Maxim’s voice was guff as it always was, but he chuckled and there was a smile on his face. “ **It is a good thing to know you are doing well, son. I am sorry we have not been able to call as much as we would all like. Business is brisk these days.** ”

 

               “ **I understand, Papa.** ” And Victor did understand. Perhaps for the first time in his life, he knew that his parent’s distance had not been borne of any true desire to avoid him. He had seen firsthand now how hard it could be to run a business and still have time for friends and family. “ **I have been busy, too. Classes and seeing the sights keeps me on my toes.** ”

 

               “ **Where are you now? Oh, wait. I have a list. Let me just…** ”

 

               “ **We’re in San Salvador, Mama.** ” Victor’s mother had dodged out of frame, but she came back into the picture at Victor’s words. “ **It is warm here. The weather is quite pleasant. Nothing like Russia for sure.** ”

 

               “ **Ah, do not get too comfortable there. We cannot wait until you come back home**.” Irina must have noticed the way Victor’s eyes had quickly flickered to the closed bathroom door and back again because her blue eyes, the same ones Victor had inherited from her, sparkled. “ **Are you going to bring him back you once your classes have ended? We saw the charges for your trip to Japan. It is our turn to spend time with our future son-in-law again, yes?** ”

 

               “ **Mama!** ”

 

               “ **Irinka! Don’t put the boy on the spot like that.** ” Maxim was quick to chastise his wife and Victor mentally thanked him for it. “ **If he has something to say, he will tell us when he is ready.** ”

 

               “ **About that I… I am going to ask him, Mama. I think soon.** ” Victor’s mother squealed and she threw her arms around his father. To his credit, Maxim looked pleased, even if he wasn’t as enthusiastic about it as his wife. “ **He doesn’t know yet… And his Russian. It is improving. He will be fluent soon, I think. Do you think that you can avoid mentioning it when he gets out here? I want it to be a surprise.** ”

 

               “ **Of course, Vitya! Consider our lips sealed.** ” Irina leans forward, as though she wants to come through the screen and pull Victor into her arms. He almost wishes she could. Right now, a hug from his mother would feel great. “ **Then you must bring him home to see us soon. We can celebrate in person!** ”

 

               “ **I’ll talk to him about it soon, I promise.** ”

 

               But there was one other thing he had to ask Yuri first, and talking to his parents, he thinks he now knows just how he wants to do it.

 

~

 

               Yuri was torn between wanting to linger in the shower and wanting to hurry to finish. The headache that had driven him here was nothing but a memory by this point, but he could feel it beating at the base of his skull as though it is threatening to put up a repeat performance as his worried thoughts kicked into overdrive.

 

               Why did he feel like this? He’d spoken with Victor’s parents any number of times. In person, over the phone, through Skype. Sometimes with Victor and even once or twice without when something had caught Victor’s attention and he’d bounded off to deal with it mid-sentence. They were nice people, and had always been kind to him and genuinely happy to speak with him as much as they were to speak with their own son. There shouldn’t be anything different. This should be easy.

 

               But there was something different.

 

               The last time he’d spoken with Victor’s mother and father, his future with Victor had still be some nebulous thing far away and out of focus. Now, it had changed. Now, there was something Yuri was working towards. A goal that he was striving to reach. He didn’t even have to go out there to know that when he looked Victor’s parents in the face, he was going to see that place he was so desperately trying to reach.

 

               He vividly remembered the first time he’d met Victor’s parents. How he’d panicked when standing in front of them. Hadn’t known what to say when they had asked him who he was. Saying that he was Victor’s boyfriend because it was the first thing that popped into his mind. Said it only because he had been thinking it over and over again as though repeating it in his head would have made it true.

 

               What would he say to them now if he panicked again? The truth? Would he just spill his guts right then and there and throw himself at Victor’s feet and beg him to marry him?

 

               Would Victor’s parents be happy or angry if he did?

 

               And so he lingered.

 

               With the shower stopped, he could hear more through the thin material of the door. The clearest sound he could hear was Victor’s deep laughter, followed by the quieter sounds of his parent’s laughing in return. They were speaking in Russian and Yuri was sure if he pressed his ear against the door and really tried to focus, he would be able to understand most of what they were saying, but he didn’t. As tempting as it was, it wasn’t his place and that felt a little too much like eavesdropping for his comfort.

 

               Instead he let the sounds wash over him as he dried off and tugged his clothes on. He admired the roll and lilt of Victor’s voice in his native tongue even as he didn’t register the words themselves as he used his towel to wipe off the steam from the mirror. Victor sounded calm and confident as he usually did and Yuri tried to siphon some of that feeling for himself as he put his glasses on and fixed his hair. It was going to be damp, but he wanted to make it as presentable as possible.

 

               Taking one last deep breath, Yuri opened the door and stepped out into the room.

 

               Victor instantly turned to him, like the point of a compass being drawn towards true North and Yuri felt a pang in his heart as their eyes met. The kind that stole his breath in a good way and left him feel fuzzy inside.

 

               “Yuri! I was just telling Mama and Papa about how much progress you’ve made with you Russian.” Victor waved him over cheerfully, scooting so that there was enough room for Yuri to sit next to him on the bed. “Come tell them hello!”

 

               Yuri moved across the room trying to exude far more confidence than he really felt. He sank into the spot at Victor’s side and offered up a shy smile and a small wave as he saw Victor’s parents’ face on the screen.

 

               “ **Hello. It is nice to see you again**.”

 

               Victor mother squealed and then began to babble in Russian so fast there was no hope for Yuri to be able to keep up. He heard maybe every third or fourth word and none of what he did understand helped him figure out exactly what she was saying, but it sounded good. Positive. Like she was definitely excited in a good way.

 

               “Mama! Mama.” Victor tried to get his mother’s attention, but once she was off, it seemed as though there was very little that could contain her. Yuri was struck again by the thought of exactly how much Irina and her son were alike.

 

               “My dear, remember Vitya said he isn’t fluent yet.” Maxim’s firm voice seemed to catch her attention enough for her to realize Yuri was staring at her in polite confusion. “That wasn’t half bad, Yuri. You’ll be fluent in no time at this rate.”

 

               “Thank you, sir.” Yuri ducked his head and cursed his traitorous blood for rushing to his face as it always did when he was faced with a compliment. “I’m afraid my accent is still atrocious, though.”

 

               “Bah!” Victor’s mother waves her hand in dismissal. “You will speak three languages. Accents do not matter when you can accomplish so much.”

 

               “He’ll actually know four languages once he finishes with Russian.” Victor sounds proud. Proud of him. Yuri cannot believe something like being multi-lingual should matter so much, but it always seems Victor is proud of him for some reason or another, even when Yuri is convinced there is nothing to be proud of. “He already spoke Thai before I met him.”

 

               “It’s nothing… I'm sure a lot of people...” It was instinct at this point to downplay his accomplishments. Perhaps it always would be, but Yuri knew Victor wouldn’t let it happen even before the other man had a chance to open his mouth.

 

               Instead of Victor, it’s his father that beats him to the punch before he could go any further.

 

               “It is not nothing. It is a great accomplishment. You are a smart man.” Maxim’s tone left no room for any argument and Yuri stiffened in his spot on the bed, only relaxing when Victor reached out and placed his hand on the small of Yuri’s back and began to rub circles there. “You are good for our Vitya. We can tell. We noticed when you were here in April. You make him a better man.”

 

               “Oh… Oh, I-I wouldn’t say that…”

 

               “Nonsense. My husband is right. Vitya has never been happier.” Irina says this as though it is a fact. Something set in stone. Obvious to all. “You are good for him. It makes me sleep easier at night to know he has someone there to take care of him.”

 

               “Yuri does always know what to do to take care of me.” Victor is beaming. Yuri allows himself to be pulled tight against his boyfriend’s side, ignoring the soft sigh his mother makes through the computer screen at the motion. “But enough about us, how have you been?”

 

               They talk for about an hour at that point, until the clock rolls over to three am on their end and every other sentence was punctuated by a yawn from either Victor or Yuri. Victor’s mother is the first to notice their tiredness and comment on it.

 

               “Maxsimka. They look exhausted. Surely you can wait to talk to Yuri about your East Asian investment portfolio sometime when they are not so tired?” Irina admonishes her husband gently, placing a pale hand on his shoulder and squeezing before turning back to Yuri and Victor through the screen. “Let us check our schedule. We can try to find a time where it will not be so late for you next time we speak.”

 

               “At this point, I think it could be considered early for us, Mama.” Victor pointed out. “But thank you. **Although it is afternoon for you… Goodnight.** ”

 

               “ **Sleep well, my dear. We will talk to you again soon.** ”

 

               Yuri also gives his goodbyes in Russian, feeling an excited squirming in his stomach when Victor’s mother squeals again and responds to him in kind, although much slower this time in order to ensure he understands her.

 

               “They really like you.” Victor had put his laptop away safely and was gathering together the things he would need for bed while Yuri watched, already curled up under the covers and trying to keep his eyes open until Victor could join him.

 

               “I’m sure they would like anyone you brought home.” Yuri covers his mouth in order to hide another yawn. “They love you. It’s easy to tell.”

 

               Victor pauses in his motions and looks over at Yuri, expression hard to read. There is a sudden burst of energy that sharpens Yuri’s focus. The panic at maybe having said the wrong thing circling through his brain before he can stop it.

 

               “I’ve never brought anyone home before you.” Victor’s voice is quiet and soft. So soft that for a moment Yuri believes he’s misheard. At least, he believes that until Victor goes on. “I’ve never wanted to bring anyone home before you, either. I mean, they know I’ve had boyfriends in the past, but they’ve never met any of them. No one else was that important to me.”

 

               “You barely knew me back then.” Yuri could have kicked himself right then. Why did he always have to let his insecurities rise to the surface in moments like these? Why couldn’t he have just taken the compliment he’d been given and leave it at that? He always had to poke and prod and make everything worse.

 

               “I didn’t have to know every intimate detail about you to know that you were important to me, even then.” If Victor was put out by Yuri’s attitude, he wasn’t give anything away. Yuri watched as he put down the clothing he was holding and moved to sit on the edge of the bed, opening his arms as Yuri crawled over to fall into his open embrace. “Do you want to know what my mother said to me that day you met them?”

 

               Yuri nodded, burying his face in the crook of Victor’s neck. He didn’t trust his voice enough to speak or trust his face not to betray the swirling whirlwind of emotions he’d suddenly been caught in, but he wanted to know the answer. Wanted to know what Victor was offering him.

 

               “She told me to hold onto you.” Yuri could feel the curve of Victor’s lips against his hair. Could feel his smile as he pressed a chaste kiss there. “She told me that she could tell you were a good one.”

 

               “I didn’t need her to tell me to know that was true, Yuri. You already had me by then, my love. I already wasn’t going anywhere.”

 

               Victor held him tightly, as though he was afraid Yuri would simply disappear and Yuri moved his arms to wrap around Victor’s torso in order to hold him in return.

 

               “I’m not going anywhere, either.” There was a roughness to Yuri’s voice that he almost didn’t recognize and his words cracked a bit. Victor didn’t seem to mind as all it did was spur him into holding onto Yuri even tighter.

 

               As if he had to hold him in place. As if there was ever anywhere else Yuri would want to be than right here in Victor’s arms where he belonged. Like they were made to hold each other like this.

 

               Yuri never had been a romantic person. Had never entertained any fantasies about soul mates or love at first sight or destiny. When his classmates and friends had been giggling and drawing hearts in the margins of their notebooks, Yuri hadn’t paid them any mind. There was no such thing as the fates drawing two people who were completely perfect for each other together. That kind of thinking was for fairytales and fiction.

 

               Now… Now he was starting to wonder if maybe he had been the one that had it wrong.

 

               If there was ever someone who could make him reconsider the existence of soul mates it was definitely Victor Nikiforov.

 

               And Yuri didn’t mind that at all.


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Apologies for the delayed (for me) chapter. This was the chapter that just would not end as I wrote it. I'm super excited about it. I chose to set most of their adventures in the US leg of the trip in Houston, TX because that was where I was raised so I'm super excited about getting to put in some familiar things!
> 
> Leo's family! American fast food! Laser tag! Fun!
> 
> As always, enjoy!

               November – The United States

 

               When they arrived in the United States, Victor was surprised at how warm it was. He even double checked his calendar to make sure it was really November and not some other month where temperatures still hovering around 23 degrees Celsius would have made more sense.

 

               “This doesn’t make any sense.” Victor had shrugged out of his sweater as they waited on the curb outside the airport for yet another round of vans to take them off to yet another campus. He stared at the article of clothing as though it were personally to blame for its uselessness in the face of the humidity that was wrapping around them. “Yuri, why is it so hot?”

 

               “Because it’s Houston. It’s always hot.” Leo was the one that supplied this answer. “And then we’ll randomly get a handful of days of winter sprinkled throughout January and February… And then it gets hot again. You get used to it.”

 

               “I don’t want to get used to it.” Yurio groused he had his hood pulled up over his head despite the weather and was holding a strand of his blonde hair between his thumb and index finger, glaring at where the edges were starting to frizz and curl. Victor didn’t even want to look at his own hair. He was sure it was doing much the same thing. “Please tell me where we’re going will have central air.”

 

               “It does.” Leo confirms. “Pretty much everywhere around here does. People would die without it. My mother sent me a weather report not too long ago. We’ll be getting a cool front towards the end of the week. It’ll help with the humidity at least.”

 

               “How does it feel to be home?” Guang Hong asks as he drags a suitcase that is roughly twice his size behind him.

 

               “I don’t know. Normal, I guess?” Leo shrugs and take a hairband from off his wrist, pulling the top half of his shoulder length hair through it and tying it back. “I give it about another ten minutes and my mother is going to realize my phone is back in service and she’ll be blowing it up trying to figure out when I’m going to come see her or vice versa.”

 

               Victor tunes out the conversation from that point in favor of unzipping his suitcase and stashing the sweater he is no longer going to need. He zips his bag again and straightens, turning to where Yuri is having a quiet conversation in Thai with Phichit at his side.

 

               Before he can interrupt to ask what they are talking about, he is now one hundred percent sure the change from Japanese to Thai is due to Victor taking more care with his Japanese lessons as of late, the vans arrive and everyone snaps to attention. They all pile into the vans on autopilot in the way only roughly three dozen students who have been constantly traveling for going on eleven months straight can.

 

               Phichit moves on to pestering Leo about things to do around town as soon as they are settled into the vans and that gives Victor Yuri’s attention back.

 

               “Do you think we’ll be able to get whoever we’re assigned to room with to switch with us again?” Victor asks. Partly as an opening to a conversation and party because he is curious. Victor was dreading the day when their luck inevitably ran out and they would end up with a pair of students that didn’t want to fly in the face of the administration and risk disciplinary action just to make sure Victor and Yuri were comfortable and happy.

 

               “I’m not sure. Probably?” Yuri allows Victor to wrap an arm around his shoulder and he leans against him. Yuri had been looking tired again. Spending more nights awake and working than going to bed at a decent hour. “If not, we’ll figure something out. We always do.”

 

               “Yes. Yes, we do.” Victor holds him tightly, spending the rest of the ride to the dorm in uncharacteristic silence. Yuri isn’t the only one that is tired, or that has spent more nights awake than asleep. Victor still doesn't know exactly what he is going to do about the proposal issue.

 

               When they pile out of the vans once they have reached their destination, Victor and Yuri stumble into the foyer along with everyone else. They hang back a bit, letting the others get their room assignments first. Victor is hoping that whoever they are supposed to end up with comes to them first. It would make it a lot easier than having to lug their things from one end of the dorm to the other.

 

               Victor doesn’t let himself think about what will happen if no one wants to switch. Maybe Yuri wouldn’t be as opposed to a hotel room like he had been in the past by now?

 

               By the time they make it to the front of the line, they find there is a teacher there handing out keys instead of leaving it to a list and the student’s own discretion. Victor can feel his heart sink. This is going to be harder to finagle than he thought, he realizes as he notices the students in front of him are signing for their keys.

 

               “Ciao, ciao!” The teacher had bushy hair that was tied back in a ponytail. His greeting had been enthusiastic and his eyes were kind. Grabbing a clipboard in front of him he looked at the pair of them expectantly. “Names?”

 

               “Victor Nikiforov.”

 

               “Yuri Katsuki.”

 

               “Ah, right. Perfect.” He ran a finger down the list until he found was he was looking for. “Room 204. Sign for your keys right here.”

 

               He spins the clipboard around and points to a blank line next to both of their names.

 

               “Which one of us is in 204?” Victor asks as he signs his name and hands over the pen and paper for Yuri to do the same.

 

               “Both of you.” The teacher waits until Yuri slides the clipboard back to him before unclipping a pair of keys from a ring of them lying on the center of the table. He must see the surprise on both Yuri and Victor’s face because he laughs and elaborates. “You don’t think the participating schools talk? I’m just saving you both the trouble of having to find people willing to swap with you.”

 

               Victor doesn’t have to look to know Yuri’s face is turning red.

 

               “T-thank you.” Yuri accepts the keys and bows slightly, grabbing Victor’s forearm and pulling him away down the hall, pausing only to grab their bags as he goes.

 

               They make their way to their new room in silence, neither one saying anything, focusing more on dragging their things through the narrow hall and not running into any of their peers in the process as everyone shuffles around trying to locate their new living spaces.

 

               “Are we really that obvious?” Once they are safe behind the closed door of their new dorm room, Yuri is the one to break the silence.

 

               “Obviously we are.” Victor doesn’t stand still. He goes about placing their suitcases on one of the beds in preparation for unpacking. Hopefully if he can start putting them on track to getting settled in, he can break the cycle of embarrassment before Yuri starts freaking out too much. He’s learned that a busy Yuri had a hard time worrying about trivial matters. “I don’t think that’s a bad thing. He was right. It does save us the trouble of having to sort out other arrangements.”

 

               “Vitya… He’s a teacher…” Yuri clearly is not in the mood to be comforted just yet. “The administration literally just basically gave us a not so subtle head nod about living together. That doesn’t bother you at all?”

 

               “Nope!” Victor chirps happily as he begins unzipping their bags and pulling out articles of clothing they will need to sort through before being placed into either drawers or the closet. “I don’t see a problem with them knowing something if it’s the truth. We have been living together. I’ve been enjoying every second of it, by the way.”

 

               “I have, too… It’s just…”

 

               “Embarrassing?” Victor finishes Yuri’s thought for him, turning around just in time to catch the dry look leveled at what should have been his back. “I don’t think so. We’re adults in a consensual, loving relationship. There are worse things that could be happening between us. So, no, I don’t mind if anyone and everyone knows that we are living together. It does not bother me at all.”

 

               Yuri deflates a bit, standing in the middle of the room and Victor quickly moves to his side, waiting for Yuri to give him a sign with how he wants to proceed.

 

               This time it is Yuri that reaches out and takes Victor into his arms and Victor goes willingly.

 

               “Sorry. I can’t help it sometimes.” Yuri mutters into the crook of Victor's neck. “It’s hard sometimes to remember that no one cares. Or, if they do, their opinion doesn’t matter. I’ll push through it. Don’t worry about me.”

 

               “I’m not worried at all.” There was a time when Victor would have been saying that just to reassure Yuri no matter what he really felt inside. Now, however, he meant it. He wasn’t worried about Yuri. Wasn’t concerned this was something that might drive a wedge between them. He knew that his boyfriend would sort through the tangled mess of his emotions in his own time, and Yuri knew Victor wasn’t going to take it personally.

 

               Sometimes it amazed Victor to realize exactly how far they'd come.

 

               After a moment, Yuri let him go so they could go back to unpacking. Victor has started moving some of the furniture around in preparation for pushing their beds together again while Yuri had taken over going through sorting through their clothing. Yuri had overslept that morning and they’d had to throw some of their things into their luggage in any random order to make it on time to catch the vans that were heading to the airport. This meant that some of Victor’s clothes had ended up in Yuri’s bags and vice versa.

 

               “I don’t recognize this sweater. Is it new?”

 

               Victor felt a jolt of panic flash up his spine. Without thinking, he spun around, eyes zeroing in on the purple sweater Yuri was reaching out for.

 

               A purple sweater that did not belong to him because it definitely belonged to Yuri Plisetsky.

 

               Victor had forgotten that he’d asked Yurio for the ring back right before they had left El Salvador. He’d been hoping to maybe stage some kind of a big production at the party they had thrown for Otabeck’s birthday before they’d left, but he’d changed his mind at the last minute. Rightfully thinking that a crowded dance club might not be the best place for it, even though Chris had offered to get Otabeck to program a synchronized light show set to Bruno Mars’ ‘Marry You’.

 

               There hadn’t been time to give the sweater and the box it hid back.

 

               And now Yuri’s fingers were just meters away from ruining his own surprise.

 

               “Oh!” Victor hoped the frantic tone in his voice was all in his head. For what it was worth, Yuri simply raised an eyebrow and paused in his motion, waiting for Victor to explain. It looked like he was more curious than suspicious so Victor must have held back enough. “That’s Yurio’s. He must have left it in our room the last time he was in there studying. Here, let me take it back to him before he comes looking for it and accuses us of stealing it for some stupid reason or another.”

 

               “Okay.” Yuri doesn’t seem to find anything strange about Victor’s request and Victor grabs the sweater and hurries out of the room, thanking the heavens that Yurio was dramatic about his things to the extent where it wasn’t suspicious at all for Victor to want to drop everything and return something of his before the other Russian could notice it was missing.

 

               Whew. That had been close.

 

~

 

               Leo had sisters. A lot of sisters.

 

               Victor hadn’t known that prior to today when they had all gone met outside the dorm for their first full day in a new city to explore. He had learned really quickly, though.

 

               There were four girls of varying ages waiting for them the next morning. The second they saw their brother there was a group squeal and Leo was suddenly buried under a pile of giggling girls.

 

               “Oh, Mom is going to be so upset when she sees you! You must have lost five pounds since you left.” The tallest one pulled away first, tucking a strand of dark hair behind her ear. She was about three centimeters or so taller than her brother by Victor’s estimate. Even though her hair was darker, her eyes match Leo’s perfectly and they shared the same tanned skin and nose.

 

               The shortest one, dark hair as well, but cut short and framing a face that was bordering on chubby and covered in freckles spoke next, though she was speaking in Spanish so Victor didn’t understand a word of it.

 

               Leo responded in the same language, pushing the other two girls off him as he did so, rolling his eyes and laughing at what the one with the long, hair that had been dyed an unnatural red color has just muttered under her breath.

 

               “At least introduce yourselves to my friends before you lecture me.” Leon scratched at the back of his neck and the girls turned, seeming to spot the group of boys, and two girls, hovering behind them waiting to be acknowledged.

 

               “Ah, where are our manners? Mom would be so disappointed if she saw.” It was the one with the same color hair as Leo and freckles splattered across her cheeks that spoke up now. “I’m Maria! The oldest.”

 

               “I’m Celeste, the youngest.” The smaller girl waved nervously.

 

               “Anna, one of the middle kids.” The redhead winked, eyeing Chris with obvious interest, causing the Swiss man to send her an amused glance in return while Phichit just shook his head and rolled his eyes. “And that’s Ariel. She’s the second oldest!”

 

               “I can introduce myself, thank you.” Ariel sniffed, tossing her long, dark hair over her shoulder and drawing her shoulders back so that she towered over her younger sibling. “It’s nice to meet all of you.”

 

               They went around exchanging introductions and asking questions. Victor quickly found out that Leo was in the middle, smack dab between Anna and Ariel. He was also the only boy in their family as their father had apparently passed away a few years before and he clearly was not missing the estrogen if the way he was edging away from his sisters and back into the main group at every opportunity was any indication.

 

               “Come on, if you want the nickel tour, we don’t have all day. Mom wants Leo home in time for dinner.” Maria grabbed her brother by the arm and pulled him along towards one of the parking lots, leaving the rest of them to follow. “Where should we take them first, Leo?”

 

               “We usually start with food.” Leo suggested. His sisters gasped and began to chatter in Spanish between themselves. “Oh… No. Come on. They aren’t going to want to go there. We’ll have plenty of time for fast food. Maria…”

 

               “Nonsense!” This time it was the redhead the lodged her protest. Victor was pretty sure her name was Anna, but there had been a lot of introductions and he never had been good with names. “Everyone likes a good burger. Besides, it’s a state law to go at least once before you leave. You wouldn’t want your nice friends to get arrested, do you?”

 

               “Where do you think they are taking us?” Yuri whispers. He’s clinging closer to Victor today than usual, and Victor recognizes that the new people and sudden flurry caused by their arrival has left him flustered. Especially since the smallest one kept smiling sweetly at him and trying to start up private conversations when Victor had been distracted by Anna wedging herself between Chris and Phichit.

 

               “I don’t know… I’m pretty sure they aren’t going to kidnap us forever.” He is, in fact, not entirely convinced of that. Maria, who has a diamond ring on her left hand, seems to be the only one who is not openly ogling the males of the group. Victor knew they were all attractive by any cultural standards, but knowing that and being faced with three overenthusiastic girls was another thing entirely. “Are all American girls so forward? Not that I would usually mind, but I don’t like the way they keep looking at you. I don’t want to have to fight for your affections, but I will if I have to.”

 

               “The way they are looking at me?” Yuri seems really and truly confused and Victor has to resist the urge to sigh heavily. His boyfriend had always been on the dense side.

 

               “ **Yes, the way they are looking at you.** ” Victor switches to Russian as he notices one of the girls edging towards them, looking interested in their conversation. “ **It’s the way I look at you, my love**.”

 

               “Jealous?” Yuri quirked an eyebrow and smirked. “ **Don’t be. You know I only look at you**.”

 

               By this time, they have all reached the parking lot and Chris and Phichit have fallen back to be closer to Victor and Yuri. There is a sense of unease as the four of them look around, trying to figure out why they are stopping here. Leo is no help as he is now arguing in Spanish with two of his sisters while the other two are watching.

 

               “They’re a lively bunch.” Chris runs a hand through his hair and smirks in the general direction of Leo and his sisters. “I like them.”

 

               “They most certainly like you, too.” Phichit laughs and punches his boyfriend on the upper arm, laughing even harder at the wounded looks Chris’ affects at the gesture. “Oh, come on. They do. Simple statement of fact.”

 

               “I should fix that. Right, _my little flower_?”

 

               Victor can’t hold back his own booming laugh and he can feel Yuri giggle at his side as Chris grabs Phichit and, with one hand at the other boy’s waist and the other cupped at the base of his head, the Swiss man dips his boyfriend and gives him a sound kiss that is eagerly returned.

 

               Someone, it looks like have been JJ, whoops and the pair straighten up. Chris whispers something in Phichit’s ear that causes the Thai man to give Chris another light smack against the arm, but they are both smiling and don’t seem to care all that three of Leo’s sister are now looking supremely disappointed.

 

               “That seemed to work…”

 

               “Don’t you dare, Victor.” Yuri warns, but Victor can’t help but lean over and place a firm kiss against his temple, noting that Leo’s sisters’ faces fall just that much more. To Yuri’s credit, his blush is more restrained and he doesn’t pull away. “Victor…”

 

               “As much as I would love to go further, I’ll leave it at that…. For now.” Victor winks.

 

               Yuri sputters at his side, but before Victor can get another lecture they are interrupted by Leo trying to catch everyone’s attention.

 

               “Alright, since none of us know how to drive a commercial van, we’re going to have to split up into different cars.” Victor looks away from Yuri curiously as Leo’s words to find that there are four vehicles parked in front of them. Two are SUVs, one blue and one forest green. One is a normal enough looking car, white and of average size. The last is a bright red convertible. “Is that, okay? I promise we’re all good drivers… Well, Celeste isn’t, but she’s not driving so…”

 

               “Can’t we just take public transport like we usually do?” Seung-Gil is the one to ask this question and he is now eyeing the red convertible with obvious hesitation.

 

               “The public transportation here is fine if you want to stay in and around the city center. Other than that it can get a little sketchy and there are some holes in the route.” Leo scratches at the nape of his neck nervously. “Where we’re going, it’ll be a lot faster and simple just to drive.”

 

               There is some commotion as every splits and tries to get in cars with their friend group. It turns out that the red convertible actually belongs to Leo and he will be driving it so Guang Hong and Seung-Gil end up there along with Celeste. JJ, Isabella and Sara end up in the white car with Ariel and Anna practically drags Michele and Emil into the blue SUV with her. She tries to grab Yurio, too, but he dodges and ends up in the passenger seat of the green van along with Victor, Yuri, Phichit, Chris, and Otabeck. Maria take the wheel of their vehicle and eyes everyone through the rearview mirror.

 

               “Not that it matters since most of you seem to already be taken, but this is probably the safest car for you.” Maria smiles sweetly as she turns her attention back outside the vehicle in order to watch the progress of the rest of the group as they pile into the remaining vehicles. “I have to apologize for my sisters’ behavior. They get a little… Excited sometimes and Leo has sent us tons of pictures. The ones from the various beaches are their favorites.”

 

               “No need to apologize. They are entitled to have a little fun.” Victor can’t help but play around a bit. Especially since Maria seems so nice and definitely embarrassed by the actions of her siblings. “As long as everyone keeps their hands above the belt, it shouldn’t hurt.”

 

               “ **They can keep their eyes and their damn hands to themselves.** ” Yurio muttered darkly from his spot in the passenger seat.

 

               “Is he always like that?” Maria asks, ignoring the indignant growl and glare from the seat next to her.

 

               “Yes. You unfortunately get used to it.” Otabeck stated from the backseat. “ **It’s not too late to go back if you don’t want to be here, Yura.** ”

 

               ” **Fuck off, Beka.** ”

 

               There was a brief silence as Maria turned the key and shifted the car into gear in preparation to fall into line as the other cars began to pull off one by one.

 

               Then Yuri spoke up, voice soft and a little bit unsure.

 

               “Where are we going?”

 

~

 

               Where they were going turned out to be a fast food restaurant with a bright orange and white striped roof. From the outside, it looked well-lit and clean. Victor supposed it couldn’t be too bad since Leo looked like he was about to start drooling just looking at the place.

 

               Yurio was standing at right beside Victor and Yuri and he was squinting at the large orange ‘W’ over their heads and then back to the name of the restaurant printed on the door.

 

               “What is this? ‘Whataburger’…. That’s not even a real word.” He scoffed and kicked a loose pebble so hard it bounced off the wall of the building and shot back to hit the toe of his leopard print high-tops.

 

               “It is a real word. Type it into a word processor sometime. You’ll see.” Despite, having put up resistance to the idea before they’d left, Leo was now clearly one hundred percent on board with their chosen dining location. “It’s a state treasure.”

 

               “It is?” Seung-Gil also seemed to be skeptical of the place as well.

 

               “It actually is. The state legislature approved it several years ago.” Maria explained patiently. “Apparently they didn’t have anything better to do that cycle.”

 

               “It’s very… Orange?” Chris tried next.

 

               “Oh, come on. It won’t be that bad. I’ve always wanted to try American fast food.” Phichit grabs Chris by the elbow and starts to pull. “If it really is a state treasure, then it has to be good.”

 

               Victor couldn’t argue with that logic, and it seemed no one else could as well, though Yurio did grumble for a bit in Russian as they all filed through the door and queued up by the counter.

 

               There was a large menu board over the front counter and Victor perused the options intently.

 

               “Nothing here seems particularly healthy…” Yuri was biting at his bottom lip as he looked over the menu himself.

 

               “Stop counting calories. We always indulge a little on the first day.” Victor nudges Yuri in the side and Yuri nudges him back. “We’ll make up for it later.”

 

               “What’s good here, Leo?” Guang Hong asks as the teenage girl at the counter looks at them with an overwhelmed expression on her face. Victor’s pretty sure they make an interesting picture, particularly Yurio, who is slumped in on himself next to Otabeck and is still quietly complaining in Russian to the one person who would actually bother to listen to him.

 

               “Everything, but they are famous for their burgers, so I’d start there if you want to stay on the safe side.” Leo responds as he moves back and lets his sisters place their own orders as they seem to be confident in what they want.

 

               “Burgers it is!” Phichit chirps and skips to the front of the line, ordering for himself and for Chris as the Swiss man stands back and lets him handle the interaction. Victor exchanges a look with Yuri and steps forward as well, copying Phichit’s order for both himself and Yuri before stepping back to let the next person try their hand.

 

               Phichit is handed a bit of plastic that is also striped in orange and white and shaped to look like an inverted ‘V’ with the number 50 emblazoned on it. Victor is handed his own number, the number 17 for some reason even though that makes no sense at all, and they follow Leo’s sisters deeper into the restaurant and claim a corner booth, leaving enough space for Yurio and Otabeck who are the next to order and receive their own plastic numbers, also comically out of the normal numerical sequence.

 

               Victor looks over at where Leo has pushed two tables together so that his sisters, himself, Guang Hong and Seung-Gil can sit together. He sees they have all placed their numbers on the table and are chattering away in a relaxed manner. He copies the motion, the others at the table following suit.

 

               “I guess they are going to bring it to us?” Chris pokes at Phichit’s number as though he doesn’t quite trust this system. “Or maybe they’ll call it and we go get it?”

 

               “I guess we’ll find out soon enough.” Yuri points out. He shuffles on the hard, plastic bench, clearly trying to make himself more comfortable. “This place isn’t so bad. Phichit’s right. I have always wanted to try American fast food. I wonder if it’s anything like the American places back home.”

 

               “It smells good.” Otabeck seems completely comfortable and relaxed. “The last time I was in America, I was in California for a gig… They didn’t have this chain, but they had a few that I suppose were just like it and they were very good. Greasy and delicious in all the best ways really.”

 

               “I hope you aren’t referring to In and Out.” Ariel, or was it Anna? Celeste? Victor was going to have to ask Yuri for their names again as he was hopeless at this. In any case, one of the sisters that was not Maria, snipes from their table across the way. “That place is complete and utter trash. Doesn’t hold a candle to here at all. Not even on the same level.”

 

               “Interstate rivalry is also a thing.” Otabeck explains and Leo’s sister stick her tongue out in response before turning around and grabbing Michele’s arm as he walks past, batting her eyelashes and saying something Victor can’t hear from his position. “That is something I also learned.”

 

               “You’ve traveled a lot before this?” Victor asks. Otabeck never had been a talkative one, but he was saying more and more these days. There were a few guesses as to why, but no one seemed to really understand where the new attitude had come from.

 

               “Not so much when I was younger, but for the past few years, yes.” The Kazakh says.

 

               “Beka’s being humble. He’s been everywhere. Everyone wants him to DJ for their big parties.” If anything, Yurio sounds prouder than the person who has actually accomplished these things. “He’s going to start producing his own music soon. It’s going to be amazing.”

 

               Otabeck shrugs. “It’ll be fine, I’m sure. I haven’t had too many bites for my original stuff yet.”

 

               “That’s just because they wouldn’t know true genius if it came up and bit them on the ass.”

 

               Victor is listening intently and he can see out of the corner of his eye that the others at their booth are as well. Before he can open his mouth to ask another question, they are interrupted by the same teenage girl from the counter arriving with their food and a tray filled with condiments.

 

               “Oh! Get plenty of ketchup!” Leo advises from his table. “The ketchup here is the best!”

 

               They all exchange looks, but Yurio grabs a handful of the offered condiment none the less and they set about sorting out their food while the teenager stands there expectantly. Yuri is the first to notice as he tends to be the most hyperaware of when he is being stared at and he turns to her politely.

 

               “Yes, ma’am? Is there anything else?” The girls flushes to the roots of her hair and Victor feels a sudden pang of sympathy. It’s hard for him to focus when Yuri gives him that doe-eyed innocent look, too.

 

               “Oh… Um…” The girl stammers and turns even more red before reaching out and grabbing the plastic number closest to her. “Th-The numbers. I need them back. People tend to steal them… Not that I think you’re going to steal them! But my manager would be upset if any more go missing…”

 

               Suddenly the odd numbering system makes that much more sense to Victor. He can see how the numbers might make an attractive target to those who want souvenirs. Especially if the food turns out to be as good as promised.

 

               “Oh. Of course!” Yuri adjusts his glasses and gives the girl a bright smile. The girl tugs nervously at her black ball cap in response with her spare hand. Yuri proceeds to collect the numbers on their table and hands them over. “We didn’t mean to seem like we were trying to keep them. We’re just not from around here.”

 

               “I… Yes, I can tell.” The girl clears her throat and moves to beat a hasty retreat. “Thanks!”

 

               Then she is gone.

 

               “And another one bites the dust.” Phichit makes a move as though he is adding a tally mark to an invisible score board.

 

               “I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.” As far as Victor knew, Yuri probably really doesn’t. It had taken him months of concerted effort to get Yuri to notice his own flirting after all. And even then, half the time Yuri either didn’t seem to believe it was true or still just dismissed it as his imagination.

 

               “He’s talking about you adding a new member to your ever-growing fan club.” Victor slides his arm around Yuri’s shoulders and pull the smaller man close, eyeing at where the girl behind the counter is getting together the next round of orders to take out. As soon as she catches sight of Yuri flush against Victor’s side he thinks he sees her heart break. Ah, yes, he is intimately aware of that feeling, too. “My love, you have left a string of broken hearts behind you from here to Japan and you don’t even know it.”

 

               “I have not. Stop being dramatic.” Yuri tries to shove Victor away, but the attempt is half-hearted at best and he doesn’t get very far until he is drawn back against Victor’s side. “Stop making fun of me.”

 

               “They’re not making fun of you.” Chris throws his hat into the ring and gets a glare from Yuri for his efforts. “You broke my heart five times in the first month I knew you.”

 

               “You’ve been breaking my heart for years, my friend.” Phichit winks as he rests his head on Chris’ shoulder. “But don’t worry, I’ve moved on at long last. I don’t begrudge you at all, Victor.”

 

               “Thanks.” Victor can practically _feel_ Yuri’s embarrassment rolling off his in waves. “So long as my heart is no longer the one being broken, I don’t mind.”

 

               “ **You are all idiots**.” Yurio tosses a fry in Victor’s general direction. “ **Stop being dumb and eat. It’s actually not half bad.** ”

 

~

 

               Leo and Yurio hadn’t been wrong. The food hadn’t been bad at all. Greasy and full of empty calories and definitely worth indulging in at least once, though Yuri made a mental note not be careful not to overindulge. He could easily gain six kilograms at least before he knew it eating like that every day.

 

               He was apparently not the only one complaining about their heavy meal. Though he wasn’t entirely sure why. They’d eaten plenty of heavy meals in the last several months and no one had really complained about them too much, but Leo took all the teasing with a grain of salt. In fact, after consulting with his sisters for a brief moment, he’d stated they had the perfect place to go next for all those who were suddenly worried about their figures.

 

               That was how they had ended up in front of this large building that looked more like a warehouse than a recreational space.

 

               “Is this it? Is this the time we’re finally going to get kidnapped?” Yurio asks. Yuri notices he is sending suspicious glances towards where three of Leo’s sisters are whispering and giggling on the fringes of the group. “I don’t trust them. They keep _looking_ at us.”

 

               “A lot of people look at us. It’s not a new thing.” Victor doesn’t exactly seem too nervous or concerned about the warehouse or people looking at them. But then again, Yuri had noticed not a lot seemed to bother him at all. Sometimes Yuri wished he could be more like that, and other times he was just glad that he had a boyfriend who was. It was a nice way to keep his own insecurities in perspective when he saw the way Victor let most everything just roll off his shoulders. “If you don’t like them looking at you pretend to be dating Otabeck or something. Being in a relationship seems to throw them off the scent a bit.”

 

               “I’m not fucking doing that.” Yurio spat out. “I cannot believe you would fucking suggest something like that.”

 

               There was Russian after that, but between Yurio’s growling anger and the rapid speed with which he spat out the words, Yuri couldn’t understand him well enough to piece together exactly what he was saying. He did know the word ‘fuck’ was used copiously, though.

 

               Before Victor or anyone else could comment, Yurio huffed and spun on his heel stalking away to the other side of the group without another word.

 

               “You shouldn’t have teased him like that.” Yuri muttered for Victor’s benefit. Luckily, the trio had been off to the side more or less on their own and it didn’t look like anyone had noticed what had happened aside from Yurio stomping off, which was normal enough that no one paid it any mind by this point. “You know he’s sensitive about being teased like that.”

 

               “Sorry. I couldn’t help it.” To his credit, Victor did look contrite and Yuri just shook his head. Victor was Victor and that was not something he could or wanted to change. “Yurio does have a valid point, though. Are we about to get kidnapped?”

 

               “I don’t think so…” Yuri was fairly certain Leo and his family weren’t about to start an international incident by kidnapping a bunch of students from twelve different countries, but there was always that ghost of anxiety hanging around that was quick to point out Yuri didn’t _know_ that for sure…

 

               They didn’t have to wait long to find out what this was all about, as Leo opened the door and led the way in not too long after that.

 

               The group stepped into a large lobby. It was well-lit and the walls were painted a deep blue with streaks of purple and green swirled around in no discernable pattern. Along one of the walls were various arcade games and several people utilizing them. In front of them was a massive counter with four attendants behind it, wandering around and joking with each other as they examined some sort of equipment.

 

               Leo strode to the desk and conversed with one of the attendants, gesturing behind him to the rest of the group, listening intently as he was given what sounded like prices, though Yuri was too far away to really hear.

 

               After a few minutes of intense discussion, Leo turned around and waited for everyone to crowd around him. Yuri didn’t protest as Victor stepped behind him and pulled him back against his chest, looping his arms around Yuri’s waist. He really was getting better at letting Victor hang off him in public and he knew Victor had been a little on edge so far today between Leo’s sisters hitting on every unattached male in the group and the strange way the cashier at the restaurant had behaved. It wouldn't hurt to humor his boyfriend for now.

 

               Plus, there was a small side of Yuri that actually liked the fact that he could draw such a possessive reflex out of Victor.

 

               “We’re lucky. They have a group that just finished a few minutes ago, so they can fit us in right now if we’re ready. We’ve got enough to fill all the slots and no one is currently signed up for the next game.” Leo inclined his head in the direction of a large sliding door that was set in the wall off to the left of the counter and had been painted to resemble a metal blast door.

 

               Yuri still had no idea what they were supposed to be doing, and no one was jumping to explain. He let Victor stay attached to him as they shuffled forward with the rest of their friends, allowing his solid weight against his back to comfort him.

 

               The room they were led into was dark, the only light coming from a set of black lights in the ceiling which cast a purple glow throughout the room and caused anything white to light up like a beacon. Along the walls were vests hanging from hooks. Once side had blue lights on the chest, back, and shoulder pads of the vests and the other had green. A gun shaped hung of plastic was hanging from each vest by a long cord.

 

               Seeing those definitely did not help Yuri’s confusion and as he glanced around the room it looked as though only about six or seven people seemed to know what was going on.

 

               Phichit was one of the few that seemed to know what was happening, as he looked excited and was bouncing impatiently on the balls of his feet.

 

               “Phichit!” Yuri hissed, trying to get his friend’s attention without getting the attention of everyone else. “[Phichit, what’s going on?]”

 

               “You’ll see!” Phichit exchanged a quick high five with Leo as the American passed by on his way to speak to another attendant that was fiddling with a TV in the corner of the room. “I think you’re going to like it.”

 

               Yuri wasn’t too sure about that. He turned around in Victor’s arms and looked up at him, seeing his own confusion mirrored back in those blue eyes. Well, Victor was no help, though he seemed more excited and less nervous than Yuri was managing to be.

 

               The attendant at the back of the room cleared his throat and the sound of conversation died down as they gave him their full attention. He took about ten minutes to go over the rules of the game they were to be playing, another five minutes walking around helping everyone strap on their vests and answer a few more questions and then they were led through yet another door and into a vast, open room, still with the same black lights, but now with all kind of obstacles and levels.

 

               They had all agreed back in the holding room to enter their names into a computer and allow it to randomly assign them into teams. Somehow Victor and Yuri had ended up on opposites side of the game and Yuri accepted the quick kiss Victor gave him as the teams were split up and led to opposite ends of the room. Yuri was on the green team and the caged in area they were shown was bathed in green light.

 

               From what he recalled of the instructions, this was going to be like a free for all type match. Their base was a safe place where they could recharge the set amount of shots on their guns or their vests if they were to fall victim to a kill shot that turned their vest red, so there was some strategic advantage to protecting it, but other than that, the only other rule seemed to be to get as many hits in on members of the opposing team as they could.

 

               Yuri felt the buzz of adrenaline building in his muscles as he waited for the siren they had been told was their cue for the game to begin to sound. At his side Phichit was grinning as he shifted his heavy gun around in his grasp. The other man had been right. Yuri was going to enjoy this, his competitive nature would thrive in a game such as this.

 

               As much as he would have loved to have been on Victor’s team, he had to admit, even if only to himself, the other man might have been a little bit of a liability. Phichit was much more used to communicating with him in an environment such as this and there had been many hours playing first person shooters over the two years they had been roommates.

 

               “ **We’re going to destroy them**.” Yurio was also on Yuri’s team and even in the dark lighting, Yuri could make out the gleam of something wicked in his eyes. The smaller Russian hefted his plastic gun in his hand as though it weighed nothing at all and there was a feral smile twisting at his lips.

 

               Yuri was suddenly very glad that the other boy was on his team and not the other.

 

               Before he could give it much more thought, a loud blare of the siren blasted through the cavernous space and they were off.

 

               Yuri, Phichit, and Yurio worked together in a tight triangle formation, Yurio running point as he was crouched low to the ground and Yuri and Phichit flanking him to cover the side and rear of their approach. It didn’t take long for them to encounter some flashing blue lights ahead in the darkness and then they were off.

 

               They were vicious and took no mercy. It was rare for any one of their vests to flash red with the indication they had been hit and more often than not those they were aiming for ended up in the red instead. The room echoed with shouts and curses and laughter.

 

               “[Phichit, on your six!]” Yuri shouted as Phichit ducked and gracefully spun around Yuri to give him a clear shot at where JJ was trying to play at being a sniper on one of the raised platforms. Yuri took the shot and grinned as he heard the Canadian let out a French curse before having to scramble away to recharge his vest and get the flashing red lights to go away.

 

               “ **Yuri. Incoming, up the south hall.** ” Yurio muttered. Yuri turned and saw a group of four in blue vests running down the narrow hall off to their right. Yurio switched to English. “Looks like your idiot is in the lead.”

 

               Sure enough, Victor seemed to be leading what looked to be a suicide charge on the green base. Though for what tactical reason Yuri couldn’t fathom.

 

               “Leave him to me. Phichit, go left. Yurio, go right. Watch my back.” The other two nodded solemnly and slipped off to do as they were told and Yuri broke into a light jog and ran down the hall right in front of them in order to intercept.

 

               All around him there was shouting in various languages. He only understood the English, but it seemed as though everyone was throwing themselves full force into the game and he didn’t need to speak any other languages to understand that what was being shouted was mostly cursing and trash talk. International in its intent so much so the individual words didn’t matter.

 

               He came around the corner and, as predicted, almost barreled face first into Victor, who had Chris and Sara flanking him.

 

               Victor raised his gun and Yuri could see his finger twitch on the trigger before he caught sight of exactly who he’d just run into. Yuri purposefully allowed his eyes to go wide and his glasses to slip a bit down the bridge of his nose making a show of letting the barrel of his own gun shake a little bit with false tremors.

 

               “Vitya?”

 

               Victor hesitated… He hesitated and that was all the opening Yuri needed.

 

               Victor’s vest flashed red and Sara and Chris let out their own cries of dismay as they were tagged by Phichit and Yurio who had come at the group from behind with Yuri’s distraction.

 

               “Not fair!” Victor pressed his trigger to no avail. He would have to go back to his own base and recharge. “Yuri! That was not fair at all!”

 

               “All’s fair in love and war, Vitya!” Yuri shouted and laughed as Yurio and Phichit shouldered past them and they ran off into the darkness again, Victor’s betrayed whines chasing them as they sprinted away to find more targets in the dark.

 

               By the time the siren blared again to signal the end of the round, they were all out of breath and sweaty. The lights came up for the first time and they all stumbled along a pathway that had been lit up in red in order to lead them all back to their starting room to deposit their equipment and get their scores.

 

               Yuri had lost count of how many times he’d caused an opponent’s vest to go red. All he knew was that his own hadn’t needed to be recharged too terribly often and neither had Phichit’s or Yurio’s.

 

               “I still say it wasn’t fair.” Victor was complaining loudly as he divested himself of his equipment as Yuri walked into the room. Catching sight of his boyfriend, Victor offered up a pout that tugged at Yuri’s heart now that the pressure of competition and the desire to crush his opponents was draining out of his system. “Yuri! Next time we have to be on the same team. You know I can’t ever stay strong in the face of how amazing you are!”

 

               “Stop whining. No one said dirty tactics were off the table.” Yurio looked happy as he moved to an empty rack to deposit his own things. “Who won?”

 

               “We haven’t found out yet.” Seung-Gil stated. “By my calculations, I would have to say your team.”

 

               “Damn right it was our team.” Yurio stated confidently. “I just want to know the exact score. Just so I know exactly how hard we stomped you losers.”

 

               “Hard.” Chris responded. He pointed to where the TV screen was now displaying the total kill count for each team as well as the top three shooters for each side. “Shit. Yuri tripled our team’s numbers on his own.”

 

               “Yeah, but he was only one kill behind me. And only because I let him have some of my shots.” Yurio turned around and Yuri returned the high five he was offered. “This was fun. We should do it again.”

 

               “I don’t think my pride can stand doing this again.” Victor whines. The scores on the screen shift to display the three lowest scores from each team and Victor’s name is firmly at the bottom. “You’re going to pay for that little move you pulled on me back there, Yuri.”

 

               “I look forward to it.” Yuri practically purred, still running high on adrenaline and the confidence that came from winning to care about any impropriety. He gave Victor a wink and allowed his hips to sway as he moved across the room to hang up his own gear.

 

               Victor sure did look silly with his mouth hanging agape.

 

               That was an image Yuri was sure he was going to take to his grave.


	32. Chapter 32

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Thanks for the wonderful responses from the last chapter! I really had a lot of fun writing it!
> 
> Next up, we go see some art and visit yet another park!

               November – The United States

 

               It has been a week since they arrived in the United States and Victor is still no closer to deciding what he is going to about asking Yuri to marry him. It’s like the longer he thinks about it, the more tangled his emotions become and the harder it is to think logically. Chris is still absolutely no help, as his most recent suggestion included releasing a hundred white doves at sunset while a skywriter wrote the words in the clouds.

 

               Needless to say, that idea has been rejected soundly and Victor had gone back to square one for what felt like the millionth time.

 

               “Grow a pair and just fucking _do it_ already.” Yurio had dropped by the room where Chris and Victor were tucked away to do their planning while Yuri and Phichit had gone with Guang Hong and Leo to pick up some pizza from a place down the street. Victor and Chris had begged off, claiming the need to study for a test that was due the next day and had pressed for the other pair to go on without them and not worry about ordering in. Finals were coming up and both Yuri and Phichit had looked like they could use the fresh air as they’d been pouring over Yurio’s complicated accounting homework for about four hours straight by that point. “At this rate, you’ll be two old men in a nursing home before you figure out how you want to propose to him.”

 

               “It has to be perfect!” Victor sighs heavily and flops back onto his back on the bed, staring up at the plain ceiling as though the answer might be written up there if he were to squint hard enough. “He deserves something _special_.”

 

               “Well, the rest of us deserve to get to stop listening to you cry about it.” Yurio spins himself around in the desk chair he’d claimed. “Besides, I’m pretty sure Yuri doesn’t give a shit about how perfect it is so long as it _actually fucking happens_. You know, before he turns eighty.”

 

               “Yurio might have a point. You’re the one that wants to make the first move.” Chris pipes up from his spot perched on top of one of the desks in the corner of the room. “If you delay too long he’s going to ask you and then you’ll be insufferable about it for like weeks. There are plenty of nice places near here. Pick one and get down on one knee like a man.”

 

               “You don’t really think he’s going to ask me, do you?” Victor hadn’t thought about that. He’d been so focused on figuring out what he was going to do that he completely forgot that Yuri could very well flip the tables on him yet again if he dallied for much longer. He shoots to his feet and glances around the room. “Oh no, what if he’s bought rings, too?”

 

               “Why don’t you ask him and find out? When it comes to how you do it I think I am pretty safe in saying this: He. Does. Not. Care.” Yurio stomps a foot on the ground and stops his spinning. “You are such a fucking idiot sometimes. Ask him.”

 

               Victor ponders this for a moment, standing in the center of the room like a lost puppy. He has to admit that Yurio might actually have a point for once and probably isn’t just saying such things to be mean or to poke fun. Well, he might be doing it a little to be mean and poke fun, but not totally. Victor is spending far too long and then when and what and not nearly enough on the why.

 

               He wants to spend the rest of his life with Yuri and he wants to let Yuri know that loud and clear. If he's going to be able to do that in the not too distant future, maybe he needs to stop looking for perfection and start looking at what is right under his nose.

 

               “Okay… Okay.” Victor tries to grab a hold of his swirling thoughts. “I guess I could do a romantic dinner for two. That’s safe and traditional. There’s a reason why traditions become traditions after all. Can’t go wrong with that.”

 

               “Is there no fucking middle ground with you?” Yurio rolls his eyes so hard Victor worries for a moment that they are going to roll right out of his head. “Either you’re all in to the point of insanity or you are so vanilla you’re putting everyone to sleep.”

 

               “Now you’re going to pick on him for having a _sane_ idea?” Chris looks like he doesn’t know if he wants to laugh or not, so he settles for a slow shake of his head. “I mean, yes, it’s a boring one, but you literally just told him Yuri wouldn’t care how he did it so long as it got done.”

 

               “No, no. He’s right.” Victor waves Chris off. “That’s uninspired by any standards. Perfectly acceptable, but not perfect. It would help if I knew this city better. You don’t think he’d going to figure something is up if I fly him all the way to Japan or Spain or Russia, do you?”

 

               “And we’re back to insane.” Someone really needed to let Yurio know that constantly scowling like that was going to give him premature wrinkles one of these days, but Victor definitely didn’t want to be the one to do it. He'd had more than his fair share of bruises from Yurio's temper, thank you very much. “You have too much money and not enough common sense. You can’t just fling expensive plane tickets at him. He’d probably say yes no matter what you did, but do you really want him so busy worrying about wasted time and money when you are supposed to be buttering up to ask the most important question of both of your lives?”

 

               Shit. When had Yurio become so astute? “Alright. I’ll stay here… Oh! Where are we supposed to be going this weekend? Some kind of art museum and a park, right?”

 

               “Yes.” Chris confirms. “Apparently we’re within walking distance of the museum district and this massive park that has all kinds of things to do. Pretty much everyone who’s anyone has already RSVPed.”

 

               “That could work. I’ll bet there are tons of scenic places that would make a good backdrop and if it seems like spur of the moment then maybe I can skip where Yuri freaks out due to anticipation…” The more Victor thinks about it, the more he becomes convinced this is the solution he has been so desperately seeking. “I can just casually slip him away from the group… Find a quiet corner…”

 

               “ _Ah, yes! That sounds like a wonderful idea, my dear!_ ” Chris’ waning enthusiasm was back, and he perked up from his desktop perch. “ _You slip those gorgeous, golden rings on your fingers and come back to us changed men and we can celebrate! Tastefully, of course. It must be tasteful for an engagement celebration._ ”

 

               “ **What did he say?** ” Yurio was glaring at Chris distrustfully now. “ **Never mind. I’ll bet it was gross. I don’t want to know after all.** ”

 

               “He just suggested that after Yuri accepts my proposal that we have a small party in celebration. A _nice_ party!” Yurio had looked like he wanted to open his mouth before Victor cut him off. “No excessive drinking. No stripping. I’m sure there is a fancy hotel or something around there that might have a restaurant that would fit a party of our size. I could get a room there, too. You know… For a private celebration…”

 

               “And with that, I’m out!” Yurio jumped out of his chair and made for the door, pausing as his hand reached out to grab the handle. “I’ll make sure to bring the rings Saturday morning. I’ll slip them to you when Yuri’s distracted or something. That way you don’t have to come up with some kind of shitty excuse for needing to go find me to get them.”

 

               “ **Thank you, Yura. I mean it. I wouldn’t be able to do any of this without you.** ”

 

               “Ha!” Yurio barked out a rough laugh at that. “Don’t thank me now. He hasn’t even said ‘yes’ yet.”

 

               With that, Yurio was gone and Victor paled where he was still standing in the middle of the room. He looked over at Chris with eyes wide with panic.

 

               “You don’t thank he could say ‘no’, do you?”

 

               “Oh, Victor… Come, come. Let us go see if we can meet the boys at that pizza place. Get you out of your head for a time, yes?”

 

               “Thanks, Chris. You are the literal best.”

 

               “Don’t I know it, though?”

 

~

 

               “He’s up to something.” Yuri had been glad Victor and Chris had begged off going out to eat with them this afternoon. It gave Yuri a chance to speak with Phichit alone and in English, instead of their usual hodgepodge of Japanese and Thai they had been resorting to these days when they wanted to talk about Victor since the Russian man always seemed to be either right at Yuri’s side or conspicuously absent in a way that made Yuri nervous and paranoid that he could walk in any moment and hear them. “I know he his.”

 

               “Are you sure this isn’t your normal paranoia talking?” Phichit asks. Yuri has to admit that is a valid question, but he shakes his head in response. This is not just Yuri’s anxiety talking. He can tell. “Okay, well, I’ve been saying that he’s been up to something for months now and it’s only been true like twice so I’m probably not the most impartial of judges.”

 

               “From an outsider’s perspective, I have to agree with Yuri. Victor has been acting off lately.” Guang Hong pushes a piece of crust around on his plate. “I thought it was just finals looming at first, but he spends more time away from you than usual and when he comes back he’s clingy even for him… And that’s saying something.”

 

               “For what it’s worth, I think we should believe Yuri. He lives with Victor. Shouldn’t he know if his boyfriend it up to something or not.” Leo adds.

 

               “Yes, but Yuri has a tendency to think that anyone and everyone are planning something when he gets in certain moods. You learn to take statements like these with a grain of salt.” Phichit pauses and seems to think about something for a moment. “You may be right this time, though, Yuri. He’s been spending a lot of time with Chris lately. That could bode either ill or well for you in the long run.”

 

               Yuri turns this bit of information over in his brain for a moment or two. Phichit wasn’t wrong. The times when Chris and Victor begged off doing something with the group in order to ‘study’ were happening more and more often. Surely, Yurio wasn’t expected to learn the entire French language in one semester and there couldn’t be _that_ many project an introductory French course would require, right?

 

               “I’ll bet it’s something good.” Guang Hong is quick to put in. “I think we’re all still pretty jealous about that whole sunset dinner on a gondola thing that happen in Venice. Or that time he flew you several hundred kilometers away to take you to an amusement park just because your sister made an offhand comment about you liking them.”

 

               “Trust me, there are roughly a thousand moments of being fifteen minutes late for things because I couldn’t drag Victor away from the mirror in time that go along with those perfect dates.” Yuri grumbled, but there was no malice in his words. “Oh, I never did tell you, Phichit. I figured out where all my clothes were getting to and why there always seem to be new things on my side of the closet.”

 

               “Oh? Do tell.”

 

               “He’s been replacing any article of clothing he finds less than fashionable and putting what he deems ‘socially acceptable’ clothes in their place.” All three of the other boys burst into laughter and Yuri tried to push down his own grin and failed miserably.

 

               “I have to wholeheartedly support him in that endeavor.” Phichit says through bursts of giggles. “You know I love you to death, Yuri, but you have the worst taste in clothing sometimes. Functional is not always the best barometer for a wardrobe.”

 

               “Functional is perfectly fine!” Yuri shoots back. Honestly, he didn’t care either way. If Victor wants to buy him new clothes, he wasn’t going to protest. He didn’t exactly have any sentimental attachment to anything in closet. So long as Victor left his comfy sweaters and sleep pants alone, Yuri wasn’t going to complain too much. “He doesn’t know I know about that, by the way.”

 

               “Our lips are sealed.” Leo made a motion as though he were turning an invisible key into a lock over his lips and pantomimed throwing it over his shoulder when he was done. “Regardless of whether or not Victor is planning another over the top romantic encounter, is there something _you_ might be planning?”

 

               Confusion flickered across Yuri’s mind and must have been reflected on his face because Phichit threw his head back and laughed so loud it was beginning to draw the attention of some of the other patrons before he threw an arm around Yuri’s shoulders.

 

               “Oh, Leo, you do not know Yuri well at all, do you?” Phichit smirked and Yuri struggled to try and get out of his grasp and figure out exactly where this conversation was going.

 

               “What do you mean about me planning… Oh… Oh!” Suddenly the realization of exactly what Leo was intimating he might be up to smacked him in the face. “No, I’m planning anything like that… Not that I don’t want to, but…”

 

               “Yuri’s too busy for matters of the heart right now.” Thank god for Phichit, Yuri thought as he allowed to the Thai man to take over the conversation while he tried to get his blush and stuttering under control. “He wants to make sure they have a nice little honeymoon nest egg before he pops the question. I keep telling him to just go for it, but he always has been the more rational of the two of us.”

 

               “I honestly had the two of you pegged to be engaged like three months ago.” Guang Hong admitted as he reached out to grab another slice for himself. “Knowing what we do about Victor, I have to say most of us are surprised he’s held out this long.”

 

               That was something Yuri had been thinking as well. Which is what led to this conversational topic in the first place. Maybe it was Phichit’s constant predictions of something brewing in Victor’s every move, or maybe it was just a feeling all of his own, but Yuri couldn’t shake the notion that Victor’s patience might be up.

 

               “If that is what he’s been plotting, I hope he keeps it marginally tame.” Yuri stated and watched as the three other males contemplated his words with differing looks of shock on their faces. Phichit even cringed. Yuri was definitely sure he didn’t want to know what his friend was thinking right then. “I know, I know. Wishful thinking.”

 

               “Yeah, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but nuclear explosions are more subtle than that man.” Leo shrugged and there was nothing Yuri could do but nod and sigh. “Phichit did totally just say you’ve been too busy lately, but have you really thought about trying to head him off at the pass and just ask him first…? I am, of course, making the highly inappropriate presumption that this is something you have thought about and have already recognized as the next logical move in the progression of your relationship, but feel free to correct me if I’m wrong.”

 

               “I’ve thought about it.” There was no point denying that as he was sure Phichit would call him out if he attempted to lie right then. In fact, there was very little else Yuri did think about these days. There were times when he just wanted to put his hands on either side of Victor’s face and just shout ‘What are you waiting for?’ as loud as he could. “This is something important to him. Not that I have any concrete proof a proposal is what he’s planning, but I do know enough about him to understand he’s enough of a romantic to want to be the one to ask me and not the other way around. This is something I want to let him have if I can. Although, if he waits too much longer, I’ll have to take matters into my own hands. I do not want to end the year without being very clear with him about what my intentions are, at least.”

 

               “Good on you, Yuri!” Phichit claps him hard enough on the back that Yuri is a bit concerned there might be a bruise that will be difficult to explain to his boyfriend between his shoulder blades later. “Way to grab the bull by the horns!”

 

               Yuri is about to say something more, intending to swear the others to secrecy, not that he thinks either Guang Hong or Leo are the gossiping kind and he knows Phichit would rather chew off his own foot than betray Yuri’s confidence, but he is stopped by the tingling of the bell over the front door. He glances up out of habit to find Victor and Chris standing there, running their eyes over the crowd and brightening as they catch sight of their group in the far corner.

 

               After that there is no more time to discuss any proposals or lack thereof.

 

~

 

               “How far away is this museum again?” Surprisingly enough it is not Yurio complaining this morning, but JJ. The Canadian is fiddling with his hair in the front facing camera of his phone as he asks the question, frowning at something he sees there.

 

               “About a twenty to thirty minute walk.” Leo provides the answer. They are all gathering in front of the dorm and preparing to make their way to their first destination of the morning.

 

               “Okay, how far is that?” JJ presses. Victor glances over in mild annoyance. Usually JJ didn’t bother him much, Victor being more than happy to tune him out most of the time when he wasn’t contributing anything productive to the group, but for some reason the other man was especially grating this morning, though that might have something more to do with Victor’s overall state of mind than JJ as a person, though.

 

               “About a little over a mile.”

 

               Yurio looks like he is about to open his mouth, but Seung-Gil cuts him off.

 

               “That would be 1.60934 kilometers.” As the group turns to stare at him, the Korean elaborates. “He was about to ask what that means in real measurements. It’s been his go-to joke since we got here. It would have been highly inefficient to let him ask the question when I could give the answer without the back and forth.”

 

               Yurio turned red and stomped his feet, but Victor had to admit Seung-Gil had a point. They had all been lightly ribbing Leo about the merits of the metric system versus Imperial measurements since day one. For the most part everyone had kind of let it go as their time there drug on, but Yurio never had been one to let something that bothered him lie.

 

               Although, there had been that memorable occasion when Victor had woken up and checked a weather app on his phone and, still half asleep had woken Yuri up in a blind panic. (Yuri! It’s 75 degrees out there! Global warming is real! We’re going to die!) To which Yuri had responded by blearily tapping a button on the app to change the temperature from Fahrenheit back to Celsius before rolling back over and drifting off to sleep again.

 

               Luckily Yuri hadn’t shared that particular story with anyone, to the best of his knowledge.

 

               Before anyone could lodge any further complaints or make any other dumb jokes, Michele and Emil finally arrived and they set off with their complete group to head off campus and across the street into the park.

 

               The morning was cooler than it had been recently, cool enough that light sweaters were required to ward off any chill. They quickly made the decision that the art museum should be first in the hopes that the by the time they were done wandering through the indoor exhibits the sun would be higher in the sky and lending more warmth to the outside world.

 

               Victor tried to contain his excitement. Tried to put forth a front like he used to be able to do eleven months ago when faking his outer façade had come more naturally to him than breathing. It was not going well. The old, polished Victor no longer settled over his frame like a perfectly cut suit. Now it felt just wrong.

 

               In fact, trying to be smooth, polished Victor was causing Yuri to look at him with obvious concern and deepening suspicion. Victor tossed it to the side after about ten minutes of trying. So what if Yuri thought he was more excitable than usual? That was better than him thinking there was something wrong.

 

               While they were perusing the art exhibits, Yurio wandered behind them and Victor felt a new weight in the pocket of his jacket. Yuri was busy allowing Phichit to take selfies of them in front of some kind of golden sculpture that looked like it could possibly be a man with no face leaning his head on his hand.

 

               “ **Don’t wuss out** ” Yurio whispered in Victor’s ear as he passed and Victor had to use every ounce of control he had not to let his facial expression change at all.

 

               Not that Victor needed the extra encouragement.

 

               Yuri looked radiant today. He looked radiant every day, but Victor did know enough to recognize this his opinion might be on the biased side. There was something special about him right now, though. His eyes were sparkling and he looked completely at eased as they walked through the wing that held the contemporary and modern art. He hung onto Chris’ every word as the other man explained the significance of this piece or that, and laughed when Phichit would pull a face or make a dry comment about being able to achieve the same effect by drinking different colored liquors and regurgitating on a canvas.

 

               Victor knew Phichit was in for a two hour lecture at least when they got back to the dorm that evening. Chris was very serious about art.

 

               They spent several hours in the museum before Yurio announced that he was done looking at boring pictures and they reconvened in order to head to the park across the street.

 

               The rings felt like a lead weight in Victor’s pocket. Nervous energy burned along his every nerve as he grabbed Yuri’s hand. His boyfriend looked up at him with a bright smile, blissfully unaware of Victor’s plans, but still very happy to be spending time with him. Okay, soon. He would find a quiet corner of the park and he was going to do it soon. The anticipation was going to kill him if he didn’t.

 

               “Should we split up?” Guang Hong asks. “I Googled this park last night and there are supposed to be several really nice gardens around here. My photography professor has been bugging me to put more nature shots in my portfolio…”

 

               “Why don’t we all go!” JJ, who is always a fairly loud person, is much louder today and it seems like Victor isn’t actually the only person who has noticed. They all shared confused glances, but there is a general ripple of a group shrug that washed through them and no one outwardly protests. “Perfect! Lead the way, Guang Hong, my man!”

 

               “Uh… Okay?” Guang Hong looks like he isn’t quite sure what to do about this new friendliness from JJ, but he doesn’t press. “I actually don’t know where any of the gardens are… I was just going to walk around aimlessly until I found something I wanted to shoot…”

 

               “There’s a reflection pool with a Japanese garden by it and there’s an outdoor performance center not too far away with another pretty interesting garden nearby it.” Leo comes to his friend’s rescue. “Either one will have plenty of nature to photograph. Although, there might not be a lot blooming in the middle of November even with the milder temperatures.”

 

               “Let’s do the garden by the reflection pool.” Okay, now JJ was just being overbearing for the sake of _being_ overbearing, though Victor still couldn’t figure out why.

 

               “What’s up with him today?” Phichit asks as their usual group of six falls towards the back of the procession.

 

               “I don’t know, but it’s annoying as fuck.” For once, Victor agrees wholeheartedly with Yurio’s statement. “I’m going to kick him right in his pretty fucking teeth if he doesn’t stop it.”

 

               “I think we all might let you by this point.” Otabeck agrees and now Victor definitely knows something must be up with the Canadian. Otabeck usually took Yurio’s threats and ill temper with silent look or a quiet warning. It was rare when he would not only agree, but also egg the small Russian on. “Maybe we’ll get lucky and he’ll get distracted and we can all escape.”

 

               “We could say I got lost again and you all had to come find me.” Victor offers, not sure if any of them will take the bait, but willing to offer up being the scapegoat if it means getting a chance to have Yuri alone and put his plan into motion.

 

               “Oh! Yes! Let’s do that.” Ever the best wingman, Chris immediately agrees. “Quick, while they’re not looking. We can just take this split in the path and then…”

 

               Before they can put their new plan into motion Sara seems to notice they are lagging behind and calls out for them to catch up.

 

               Damn it. Foiled again.

 

               He just can’t understand it. Usually no one cares if anyone else wants to go off on their own. The long standing group chat that has been a constant presence on their phones has been more than enough in the past to keep them in touch enough to ensure if someone does get lost for real that they can get the support they need to find their way back. With a group so large, it is often difficult to find activities everyone would want to do, but never before have they been more or less held hostage like this.

 

               The uncertainty of what is happening layers itself on top of Victor’s already unsettled mood and Yuri is starting to notice there is something wrong now because the grip on Victor’s hand tightens and Yuri keeps looking at him out of the corner of his eye as though he is hoping Victor will break and tell him what it bothering him.

 

               As though it could be that simple.

 

               “Something is up with him.” Yuri looks worried and a smidge annoyed himself.

 

               “Most definitely. I mean, he can be a self-centered dick sometimes, but this is a whole new level of douchery.” Phichit has his phone out now and is keying in a response to a text he had just received. “Guang Hong thinks he’s finally lost it.”

 

               “Lost what? The asshole never had anything to begin with.” Yurio looks as though he wanted to make a mad dash for freedom and Victor can’t blame him in the slightest. If he were to go ahead and make that play, Victor would go with him, dragging Yuri behind him, too. “I’m not letting him hold us hostage to whatever ego trip he’s booked passage on. Come on, Beka. They can’t hold us here.”

 

               “Agreed.” Victor tugs on Yuri’s hand, pulling the other man after him as they all turn to go. “We can catch up later. If JJ really wants us to do something he should have the common decency to tell us what that thing was in advance.”

 

               Before they can get more than two steps in the opposite direction there is a loud squeal coming from somewhere behind them. Victor feels his heart drop into the pit of his stomach as he turns around slowly.

 

               No. No, this cannot be happening. Why today? Why did JJ have to do this today?

 

               Sure enough, when he turned he sees JJ, down on one knee in front of Isabella, a black box open in his hands and the sparkle of a large diamond nestled within visible even from this distance. Victor bites back a frustrated groan. Of course, this would happen right now. Why couldn’t anything he planned go right?

 

               Everyone around them breaks out into raucous applause as Isabella bursts into tears and begins nodding, allowing JJ to slide the ring onto her finger and holding it up so everyone can see. Sara nudges Guang Hong, who fumbles for the camera around his neck and begins to take pictures.

 

               “Aw, that’s actually pretty cute.” Of course, Yuri would think it was cute. Victor can’t even be mad at him because his boyfriend has no idea that’s supposed to be _them_ over there getting engaged. “We should go say congratulations.”

 

               Yuri and Phichit hurry away, both chattering away excitedly in Thai as they join where everyone else is talking, hugging, and taking picture. Victor, Chris, and Yurio still hang back.

 

               “You know, I’m actually starting to think the universe has some kind of a grudge against you.” Yurio actually sounds as though he feels sorry for Victor this time. “You want me to take your package back?”

 

               “If you don’t mind?” Victor tries not to feel depressed. It’s not JJ’s fault that he has poor timing. It’s not anyone’s fault that luck never seems to be on his side. “There is no way I’m asking him for at least another week or two. I am _not_ going to be accused of copying JJ.”

 

               “I don’t blame you at all.” Yurio holds out a hand and Victor angles his body so that his hands are blocked as his pulls his own black box out of his jacket pocket and hands it back to Yurio for more safekeeping. “If it’ll make you feel better, I can trip the little shit later. He might even fall on his stupid fucking face if I time it just right.”

 

               “Would you?” Normally Victor wouldn’t fall to such silly revenge tactics, but right now his heart is aching with disappointment and he can’t be bothered.

 

               “Tough break, my friend.” Chris places a steady hand on Victor’s back. “I know it sucks, but we should go over there before someone thinks something is wrong, yes?”

 

               “I guess…”

 

               “Come on, Victor. Happy face. We’ll fix this. I promise.”

 

               Victor sighed. Logically, he knew Chris was right. This wasn’t the end of the world, but he’d been so excited…

 

               Oh, well, that was just going to make the moment when the stars did align all the sweeter.

 

               Victor was done playing around.


	33. Chapter 33

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Thanks to everyone who left a comment on the last chapter!
> 
> In this chapter: A change of scenery! Yuri's birthday! Surprises!?

 

 

               November – The United States

 

               “New York?” Victor perked his head up as he heard the question fall from Yuri’s lips and drags himself out of the self-imposed hell of studying for the finals that were to begin in two weeks. “I don’t remember New York being on the itinerary. When are we supposed to go there?”

 

               “It’s not, but some of us were thinking it would be a shame to be in America and miss out on spending some time in New York City.” Phichit closed his laptop with a firm click and pushed it away from himself as though he was rejecting the idea of studying any further with his whole being. “We don’t have any more Cultural Studies lectures until we get to Canada in December because of… What did Leo call that holiday? Thanksgiving? Whatever. In any case, the week after the holiday we don’t have any in person classes and we could just go to Canada from there and meet everyone afterwards. Like when you and Victor went to Japan and met us in El Salvador.”

 

               “Only this time everyone’s going and it’ll be a true holiday and not a work trip.” Chris finishes up his boyfriend’s explanation. “It sounds like it’ll be a good time. Phichit and I are going. You should both come, too.”

 

               “Yuri’s birthday will be during that week!” Phichit exclaims. “I’ll bet there’s all kind of fun clubs that we could…”

 

               “No clubs.” Yuri’s voice if firm and doesn’t hold even the smallest of wavers. “Just because America is taking a break doesn’t mean that our other classes aren’t going to slack off on giving us more work. We don’t have to do anything at all, fact.”

 

               “We have to do _something_.” Victor knows he’s whining and Yuri sends him a look that is bordering on exasperated. “No clubs. Nothing crazy, I promise, but we have to do something for your birthday.”

 

               “Victor…” Victor can tell Yuri is warning him not to go overboard behind his back.

 

               “I promise, my love.” Victor places a hand over his heart and smiles softly. For once, Yuri didn’t have to be worried. Victor hadn’t been planning anything big for Yuri’s birthday. In fact, if it were left up to him he would have whisked Yuri away from the world. He had the strong urge to tuck them both away in a fit of selfish desire. “No parties. Nothing big. Maybe a nice lunch with our friends and then we can spend the evening doing whatever you want to do… It might be fun to do those things in New York, though.”

 

               “We have to study…” It’s a weak argument and Victor can tell Yuri knows before the words even leave his mouth that he’s lost. Victor pushes out his bottom lip and purposefully widens his eyes, doing his best to convince Yuri with his facial features alone. It works, and Victor can see the exact moment when Yuri’s resolve crumbles into dust. “Fine. When are we leaving?”

 

               “Yay! Good job Victor.” Phichit holds a hand up from across the table and Victor returns his high five more not to leave the other man hanging than anything else. “Leo’s got plans with his family until Sunday so we figured we’d book tickets for Monday morning. Yuri’s birthday is Wednesday so that will give us enough time to get settled, be all touristy, and find a good lunch place that fits Yuri’s delicate sensibilities.”

 

               “Is anyone staying behind?” Victor asks, curious now that he has secured a place for himself and Yuri on this trip.

 

               “Not that I’m aware of. The two of you were the last holdouts.” Chris nudges Phichit and the Thai man takes out his phone and scrolls through something on the screen before nodding at his boyfriend. “Yeah. With both of you going we’ll have the whole gang again.”

 

               “I’ll let Leo know you’re in. I think we’re meeting later tonight to purchase tickets and look at hotels.” Phichit fiddles with his phone for another long moment, tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth as he concentrates. “Yes, we’re doing dinner at this burrito place Leo wants us to try and we’ll sort out arrangements then.”

 

               “Dig out your winter clothes again.” Chris warns. “The temperature up there was 10 degrees Celsius today according to my weather app. It doesn’t look like they are predicting snow, but there are supposed to be grey skies and plenty of cold wind.”

 

               “Why are we wanting to go there again?” Yuri asks and the question is a mixture of teasing and honest inquiry this time.

 

               “It won’t be so bad. I’ll help keep you warm.” Victor reaches out to pull Yuri back against his chest and only meets a minimum of squirming resistance. “The cold doesn’t bother me and so I’d be happy to lend you some extra warmth.”

 

               There is the sound of a shutter snap from across the table and Phichit is giggling. Yuri squeals and tries to struggle out of Victor’s arm again in an attempt to get his friend’s phone away from him, but Victor doesn’t let him go.

 

               “You know it’s already too late to stop that from going on Instagram.” Victor murmurs into the top of Yuri’s head. “Face it, babe, he’s just too fast for mere mortals like us.”

 

               “It doesn’t help that you seem to _like_ it when this happens.” Victor doesn’t have to see his boyfriend’s face to know that he is frowning and pouting in a way that would have Victor tempted to kiss him until he forgot what he was grumpy about. “Victor, we need to start confiscating his phone.”

 

               “Good luck with that.” Phichit is still typing away on his device, completely unconcerned by Yuri’s threats. “You’ll have to pry it out of my cold, dead fingers.”

 

               “That can be arranged.”

 

               Victor was roughly eighty percent sure Yuri didn’t mean it, but he tightened his grip on his boyfriend anyway. Just in case…

 

               “Have you thought of any plans for Yuri’s birthday yet, Victor?” Phichit was also clearly not concerned about Yuri’s threats and was now sending Victor a pointed look from over the top of his phone.

 

               “I wouldn’t tell you even if I did.” Victor shot back, probably a bit more defensively than he should have. “Sorry, Chulanont. You’ll have to try better than that if you want to get anything out of me.”

 

               The truth of the matter was that Victor had no idea what he was going to do for Yuri’s birthday. He had about four different plans in the works with different levels of intensity and now they were changing the venue entirely by going to a completely different city? Although… That might not be a bad thing at all…

 

               “Can we please stop discussing my birthday and go back to studying?” Yuri is practically begging now and Victor lets him go with a soft sigh. He knows enough by now to recognize when Yuri is in a mood and won’t be receptive to being distracted for much longer.

 

               This time Yuri does have a small point. If they are going to spend one of the weeks in the lead up to finals goofing off, they should probably get some work in now. Besides, Yuri will be much more receptive to whatever Victor comes up with if he has the weight of his schoolwork off his mind.

 

               It’ll give Victor a better opportunity to Google things without Yuri noticing if there is some physical distance between them after all.

 

~

 

               They arrive in New York early Monday morning and make their way from the airport to the hotel they agreed on. For once, there hadn’t been any complaining or penny pinching. It seemed like the upcoming end of the year was getting under all of their skins and they were more than ready to start throwing caution to the wind and break open their bank accounts for the occasion. Victor and Yuri agreed to split their lodging this time and Yuri only complained a _little_ about the price.

 

               The hotel is located on 44th street within spitting distance of Times Square and, even though the weather is definitely within winter jacket range, Victor can’t help but wheedle Yuri into letting him book a room with a terrace. The view is more than worth it and he called ahead and confirmed with the staff that space heaters could be provided should they want to spend any amount of time out there.

 

               Victor knows he has made the right choice as soon as he discovers the shower is massive and has a shower head that is positioned in the middle of it, hanging free from the ceiling and set to cascade down like a waterfall.

 

               Yes, this will do very nicely.

 

               They aren’t given much of a chance to settle in before Phichit and Chris are pounding on their door, begging for them to come out and explore.

 

               “What are the odds that they will go away?” Victor is sprawled on the king sized bed and he turns his head to look at where Yuri is digging through one of their suitcases, because they are ‘their’ suitcases now since both of them have given up trying to keep their things separate any longer.

 

               “I would say slim to none. Go let them in and get it over with.” Yuri states blandly, still digging. Victor isn’t sure what his boyfriend is looking for, but he leaves him to it, rolling over and falling to his feet.

 

               He trudges to the door and moves out of the way and Chris and Phichit burst through. They are all sunshine and smiles and excited energy and Victor feels some of the tiredness from yet another long flight fall off in their presence.

 

               “Hello!” Phichit is quick to start wandering around the room, wide eyed and taking in every detail. “Oh, wow… Our room is nice but this…”

 

               “I offered to get us a suite. You refused.” Chris doesn’t seem put out about this at all, but he does shoot Victor an impressed look that Victor receives with no small amount of pride. “One of these days you are going to let me spoil you the way you deserve, _my little flower_.”

 

               “Good luck. I’ve been trying to get him to let me do that for two years.” Yuri has now disappeared up to his shoulders in the bag and, as such, his voice comes out muffled. “I swear I put them in here… Ah!”

 

               Yuri comes out from the depths of the bag clutching a white container in one hand. He grins triumphantly and heads to the bathroom without another word.

 

               “That looks like his contacts.” Phichit says as they all watch him go. Apparently, they are not going to get an explanation because Yuri is back within about thirty seconds, still in his glasses. “Yuri, why did you go stow your contacts in the bathroom?”

 

               “Hm? Oh, I was just thinking about making sure they were ready in case I wanted to wear them sometime this week.” Yuri pauses in front of a mirror that is hanging on the wall and adjusts where his hair was ruffled from his nosedive into their luggage. “Nothing is worse than actually wanting to put them in only to find them all dried out and nasty in the bottom of a suitcase.”

 

               It was clear Yuri was not going to elaborate about what he thought he might be doing where he would want his contacts over his glasses, as, hair adjusted, he turned back to where his friends were staring at him with a cheerful smile on his face. “So is it just us?”

 

               “Uh… No, Yurio and Otabeck are waiting for us in the lobby.” Phichit looks like he wants to press for a moment, but seems to think better of it. “You might want to grab one or two of your external batteries, Yuri. They said something about wanting to get lost in the city.”

 

               “Thanks for the warning.” Victor watches as Yuri moves across the room with his usual grace. He unzips a pocket on the front of one of his bags and grabs the bright blue external battery there before walking back across the room to grab the messenger bag he’d left hanging off the back of a chair. “Ready to go, Victor?”

 

               “Ready.” Victor files his questions away for later. He grabs his own wallet and they shrug into coats, ready to go out into the cold weather.

 

               Besides, he’s got other things to worry about that Yuri’s choice of corrective eyewear.

 

~

 

               Yuri wakes up when he hears a knock on the door followed by a soft curse from Victor as the other man tries to hurry from the bathroom to the door while not making too many loud noises. Yuri uses the cover of Victor stepping out into the hall to roll over so that he’s lying with his back to the door. He knows that he’s open to be woken up whether he is ready to be awake or not, but he buries his face into Victor’s pillow anyway.

 

               Maybe if he looks pathetic or adorable enough, Victor will leave him alone.

 

               As soon as he feels Victor’s lips on the nape of his neck, he knows he’s lost.

 

               “Happy birthday, my love.”

 

               Oh.

 

               Yuri’s eyes pop open and he is much more alert than he usually is upon just waking. How could he have forgotten about that?

 

               He lies there for a minute, letting Victor meld against his back while staring blearily at the wall on the opposite side of the bed. Yuri blinks a few times before remembering the blurriness is more because he doesn’t have his glasses on that any lingering sleepiness and he sighs and taps on where Victor’s arm is resting over his chest on top of the covers as a signal that he’s ready to move.

 

               There is another soft kiss right at the base of his ear this time and Victor moves to allow him to sit up, handing Yuri his glasses as he does so.

 

               “Thanks.” Yuri clears his throat to dislodge some of the roughness there from sleep, and once his glasses on securely in their proper place, the room comes into focus. He turns and cups Victor’s jaw with his hand, rubbing his thumb along Victor’s sharp cheekbone before scooting forward and giving his boyfriend a lingering kiss.

 

               “Mmm… As much as I’m enjoying this, breakfast is going to get cold.” Victor is the one to pull back first. Yuri frowns and tries to follow his retreat. That’s different. Yuri’s usually the one that has to pull back and remind the other man of their pressing obligations. “Yuri…”

 

               “Fine, fine.” Yuri sighs and pulls back, allowing Victor to go retrieve the tray that he had placed on a nearby table. Yuri curses the fact that Victor is a morning person and Yuri decidedly is not. It’s so much easier for Victor to surprise him like this than it is for Yuri to return the favor. “Another breakfast on the balcony?”

 

               “No, I think it is quite too cold for that even with space heaters this morning.” Instead, Victor brings the tray to him and settles down into the bed himself. Yuri wiggles around so they have enough room to settle the food in front of them without putting it in danger of being knocked over by a wayward knee. “Will breakfast in bed be an acceptable substitute?”

 

               “Food in bed is always an acceptable substitute for anything.” Yuri reaches out to grab a bowl of fresh fruit and a fork. “If you aren’t careful, I’m going to get used to waking up with breakfast ready and waiting for me every morning.”

 

               “I fail to see the downside to such an arrangement.”

 

               Yuri hums in agreement as they set about eating in companionable silence.

 

               Yuri lets the quiet wash over him and fan the contented feeling that has settled directly under his ribs. There a restless buzz at the back of his mind that is worrying about exactly what Victor might have planned for their day, but he pushes it down easily enough. Victor looks happy and calm and not as on edge as he has been for the past three weeks or so. That is more than enough to chase away any trepidation Yuri might have about where today might lead. Victor was fairly terrible at hiding when he was planning something big after all.

 

               The food is delicious. Considering the price range of this hotel, Yuri supposed that shouldn’t be surprising at all. He does take a moment to appreciate all the tiny details though. The way Victor has ordered blueberry pancakes, Yuri’s favorite. How there is green tea on the tray for Yuri since coffee makes him too jittery in the morning. How there is a small bowl of fresh cream to dip the strawberries he’d ordered in.

 

               “It’s perfect.” Yuri’s voice is soft, as though he is trying to preserve the intimate air around them. As though if he speaks too loud, it will all disappear as though it were nothing more than a dream. “Vitya, it’s perfect.”

 

               “This is just the beginning you know.” Victor dips one of the strawberries in the cream and hold it up for Yuri to take a delicate bite. Yuri closes his eyes and complies, biting back a low groan as the tartness of the berry bursts against his tongue, chased by the sweetness of the cream. “I have all day to spoil you.”

 

               Yuri chews and swallows, taking the remainder of the berry from Victor before speaking. “Please tell me you haven’t planned anything too extravagant.”

 

               “Don’t you worry, I didn’t go overboard. I promised you I wouldn’t, didn’t I?” Victor chuckles lightly and takes a bite of his waffles. “We’re spending the morning at a spa a few blocks away that has some deep soaking tubs that are supposed to be as close to a Japanese onsen as you can get without actually being in Japan. Then, we’ll meet the other for lunch. I couldn’t keep them away from you for the whole day, so I had to make a compromise there… But the rest of the afternoon and evening I’ve got you all to myself again.”

 

               “And what are you planning to do with me, then?” Yuri teases.

 

               “I’m not telling.” Victor reaches out and taps Yuri on the nose with his index finger. “That would ruin the surprise.”

 

               Yuri’s stomach twists around in a mixture of pleasure and anticipation. So far Victor’s plans sound restrained enough. He’s just going to have to trust that whatever Victor had planned, he’s going to enjoy it.

 

               They are almost done eating when Victor gasps and shuffles away from the center of the bed.

 

               “Oh! Before I forget!”

 

               Yuri grabs the tray with their empty dishes and places it on the bedside table and watches as Victor hurries across the room and disappears into the bathroom. There are sounds of him rummaging around in their before he comes back with his hands hidden behind him.

 

               “Vitya, what…?”

 

               Victor bounces back onto the bed, grinning like a kid who’s gotten their hand caught in the cookie jar and feel absolutely no remorse. He brings his hands around and offers Yuri and medium sized box wrapped in sparkly blue paper and tied with a silver bow.

 

               “I’m sorry, but it’s going to drive me crazy holding onto your present, so I thought I might give it to you now.”

 

               “Vitya, you didn’t have to get me anything.” Yuri’s protests are automatic, but true. Victor didn’t have to get him anything at all. Simply having the other man here, in his life, is all the present he needs. “Please tell me you didn’t spend a lot of money on this.”

 

               “Fine, I won’t tell you.” Victor shoves the present into Yuri’s hands and places a kiss on his cheek. His eyes and shining and Yuri can tell his barely restraining himself from bouncing around in his excitement.

 

               Taking a deep breath, Yuri begins the process of unwrapping the present. He slides the silver ribbon off and tears away the paper neatly, trying not to make too much of a mess. Underneath the paper is a plain looking black box.

 

               He pulls off the lid and can’t help the gasp that falls from his lips as he sees exactly what is waiting for him inside.

 

               “Where did you get this!?” Yuri tosses the crumpled paper to the side and slide his fingers carefully into the box and slowly pulls out the book resting inside. “Vitya! This had to have cost a fortune!”

 

               “It wasn’t so bad.”

 

               Yuri doesn’t have a response to that as he runs his eyes over the book his is gingerly holding in his hands. The cover is edges in white and the picture in the center is blurry and depicts the blurry outline of a queen holding a scepter in the bottom left corner. Cursive writing spells out the title along the bottom of the cover and curling up the side where space runs out and says ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’.

 

               “This… This is the special edition with illustrations by Salvador Dali. They only printed like 2,500 copies!” Yuri is now having a hard time breathing. How? How did Victor even remember this was something he wanted. He was sure he had only mentioned it once, in passing, like four months ago when discussing art with Chris. He didn’t even think Victor had been paying attention to the conversation at the time.

 

               “Open it.” Victor nudges Yuri in the side with his elbow gently and Yuri tries to stop the trembling in his hands as he reverently opens the book to take a peek at the title page.

 

               He promptly drops it in his lap as though it has burned him.

 

               “It’s signed… You got me a signed copy.” Tears are gathering in the corners of his eyes and Yuri knows he is fighting a losing battle when it comes to holding them back. “I can’t accept this. It’s too much.”

 

               “You can and you will.” Victor picks up the book and places it back in its box, closing the lid and setting it safely off to the side before gathering Yuri up in his arms. Not quite ready to look Victor in the eye at the moment, Yuri buries his face in Victor’s chest. “I’ve already made arrangements to have it shipped to Japan tomorrow morning. Your mother knows to expect it. I didn’t think you would be comfortable dragging it around Canada with us for a whole month.”

 

               Yuri is speechless. Really and truly speechless. It’s all he can do just to let Victor hold him and rock him back and forth.

 

               “You do like it, right?” There is a tinge of nervousness in Victor’s question and this is enough to snap Yuri back to reality.

 

               “I love it.” Yuri pulls back. Gives Victor a kiss. “No, I take that back. I love _you_.”

 

               Victor pulls him close again. Runs a hand through Yuri’s hair.

 

               “And I love you, my Yuri.”

 

               “And I love you.”

 

~

 

               Perfect. So far everything had been perfect.

 

               Yuri had loved the gift Victor had gotten for him, once he’d gotten over the initial shock that Victor definitely would go to such lengths to find a rare edition of a story Yuri had confessed was one of his favorites.

 

               The spa had gone well, too. Yuri had come out with his skin glowing and his entire body more relaxed than Victor had ever seen him before. After that, they had stopped back at the hotel briefly to video call Yuri’s family so they could exchange birthday greetings before going to meet their friends for lunch.

 

               That had been perfect, too.

 

               After lunch Victor, Yuri, Phichit, Chris, Yurio, and Otabeck had gone with them for a shopping trip along Houston Street. While Yuri refused to let anyone buy him anything, it was still a breath of fresh air to shuffle from high end store to high end store, joking around and trying things on. Looking for the most ridiculously priced outfit and uploading pictures of their adventures to their various Instagram accounts.

 

               As it got closer and closer to sunset, Victor and Yuri said their goodbyes and they left their friends behind, heading to Victor’s last surprise of the day.

 

               “Skating?”

 

               Yuri’s brown eyes were shining with excitement as he stood along the railing of the ledge overlooking the ice rink at Rockefeller Center below them.

 

               “I couldn’t get them to agree to let me rent out the whole thing on such short notice, but I did get them to agree to cut their normal number of allowed skaters for the hour in half.” Victor wraps his scarf tighter around his neck as a bit of a chill wind kicks up. He places his bare hand on the small of Yuri’s back and guides the other man towards where they can pick up pairs of rental skates. “We should still have plenty of room to move, though.”

 

               “It’s perfect.” Yuri stops and grabs Victor, holding him close. “Vitya, this whole day has been perfect.”

 

               Victor kisses him, keeping it light and chaste despite the urge to draw it out and take it deep. “Come on, darling. The sun will set soon. We want to be on the ice before then, yes?”

 

               Yuri nods, still looking stunned and a bit overwhelmed as Victor takes care of securing the properly sized skates. They find a bench and lace up, stepping out onto the ice and beginning to skate lazy circles around the other skaters.

 

               Victor takes Yuri’s hand in his and they glide across the ice. There is music playing in the background and the setting sun casts beams of reflected light across the whole area. Yuri laughs as Victor angles their bodies so that they are spinning together, dancing like they did so many month ago on an ice rink in Russia.

 

               Time seems to fly then as they dance around, the other skaters moving to make way for them as they are both so lost in each other no one else matters.

 

               Victor pulls them to a stop in the middle of the rink, taking Yuri’s hands in his and suppressing a shiver that runs up his spine.

 

               “Vitya, you look cold.” Yuri has left his glasses back at the hotel and decided on contacts for the day’s excursion. As much as Victor loves seeing him in his frames, he has to admit that being able to look directly into his warm eyes without a barrier between them makes his heart beat wildly in his chest. “Why didn’t you bring gloves?”

 

               “I must have forgotten in all the excitement.” Victor grins sheepishly. “Can I borrow yours? Just for a few minutes. To warm my hands up. I promise I’ll give them back before you freeze.”

 

               “Of course.” Yuri pulls his hands away and tugs the gloves off, handing them to Victor and frowning as Victor immediately stuffs them in his pocket. “Victor…?”

 

               Victor pulls his hand out and grabs Yuri’s again, placing something in the palm of his hand. Yuri turns his hand over and gasps, tears instantly appearing in the corner of his eyes for the second time that day.

 

               There is a golden ring sitting in his palm.

 

               “Yuri, I should have done this months ago.” Victor hold out his own hand so that Yuri can see the matching band he is holding. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you. There has never been anyone that has made me feel the way you do. I got two rings because I want us to always be partners. Equals. Together.”

 

               The tears are flowing freely down Yuri’s face now and Victor can feel them welling up in his eyes as well.

 

               “In Russia, we wear the rings on our right ring fingers, so I was thinking maybe we could do the same and then switch them over at the wedding… If you say ‘yes’ that is.”

 

               “I don’t recall you asking a question, yet.” Yuri’s voice is cracking, but he is smiling so wide it makes Victor’s heart burn.

 

               “You’re right. I haven’t.” Victor grabs Yuri’s right hand. “Yuri Katsuki, will you marry me?”

 

               “Yes!”

 

               They take turns slipping the rings on before collapsing into each other’s arms, skates slipping on the ice as they cling to each other. Their kisses taste like salt from their tears and it’s messy since they can’t stop smiling or laughing enough to do it properly.

 

               Dimly, Victor is aware of applause coming from around them and they separate and look around, finding that their friends are on the ice cheering and clapping. Guang Hong and Phichit both have cameras and Victor glances down at Yuri to see the other man flushed red from head to toe.

 

               “What are you doing here?” Victor asks as the group skates over to them.

 

               “A little birdy might have told us you had some big plans today and we thought you might like some photographic evidence of the event.” Phichit doesn’t even check his speed as he throws himself onto Yuri, almost bring all three of them down to the ice as Victor still has not released his hold on his boyfriend… No, not boyfriend. His _fiancé_.

 

               “Really, Chris?” Victor doesn’t feel upset at all as several people start patting them both on the backs.

 

               “Sorry, my dear. I couldn’t help it. You know how persuasive Phichit can be.” Chris does not look contrite in the slightest, but Victor doesn’t care. He’s pretty sure he’s never going to care about anything in his life ever again.

 

               Yuri has ditched Phichit and slips back against Victor’s side where he belongs. Victor hold him tight.

 

               He never wants to let go.

 

               And now he never has to.

 

               Perfect. Everything was perfect.


	34. Chapter 34

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Wow... Thanks for all those amazing comments on the last chapter. I'll be responding to them soon, but for now, it's like 1 am and I want to get this chapter up and posted and get some shut eye. 
> 
> Now we're in that fun stage where they're like "Wow, we're engaged. This is great!" So, more fluffiness ahead! Also, maybe finding out what's going on between Michele and Sara? Maybe? ^_^

               December – Canada

 

               Victor still can’t believe it. Even standing in the queue for coffee in the Starbucks on the ground floor of a Canadian library, his eyes still fall down to his right hand and the glint of gold settled there. He’d be lying if he said he hadn’t had fantasies like this over the past year. Ever since Russia, really, if he wants to be honest with himself.

 

               Even with all the fantasizing, the dreams, the moments when he would imagine that Yuri could be his forever one day, Victor still can’t believe it actually happened.

 

               What fantastic twist of fate had led to this moment? This moment when he could actually say that he was engaged to _Yuri Katsuki_ and have it be the truth?

 

               “You do know that it’s not going to disappear if you take your eyes off it for more than a few seconds, right?” Victor looks up to find Chris giving him an amused look.

 

               Jolted out of his thoughts, Victor rubs the nape of his neck with his left hand and lifts his right out in front of him, rolling his wrist so that the ring catches the afternoon sun streaming in through the plate glass window. He hums low in his throat as he admires the glimmer and shine.

 

               “I know.” He sighs heavily, still not dropping his hand or looking away. “I can’t help it. I keep thinking it might have been a dream and that I’m going to wake up any moment now. I’m pretty sure that would break my heart.”

 

               He can see Chris admiring the ring as well and it takes a solid kick right between his shoulder blades from Yurio to bring him back to the present.

 

               “ **Oi! The line’s moving. Get on with it, old man**.” Victor glances back over his shoulder to find the blonde glaring daggers at him with arms crossed over his chest. “ **For fuck’s sake. You’re worse now than you ever were before. Come on, the faster you get his coffee, the faster you can actually get back to the real thing and spend the rest of the afternoon grossing us all out as you stare into each other’s eyes like the giant saps you are.** ”

 

               “ **Yurio!** ” Victor knows he’s pushing Yurio’s buttons on purpose, but he can’t help it as he turns with a bright smile and grabs for the other boy before he can react. He pulls the Russian into a tight hug even as Yurio struggles to get away. “ **Yurio! Can you believe it? We’re getting married!** ”

 

               “Of course, I fucking believe it!” Yurio is sputtering and trying to kick Victor in the shin, but Victor has strategically pinned his arms to his side so he has nothing to push off of and they are too close for Yurio to get any leverage to put any amount of power behind his kicks. “We all saw it happen. **GET THE FUCK OFF ME!** ”

 

               Victor releases him, dancing backwards in order to avoid being either hit or kicked in the process. Not even Yurio’s constant sour attitude is going to be enough to bring him down today.

 

               “It’s already been four days. How much longer is this going to last? I need to know so that I can go ahead and just start avoiding you until it’s over.” Yurio is still glaring, but it doesn’t look like he’s going to lash out physically, so Victor steps back into his spot in the queue. Apparently, they are not the only students feeling the need for caffeine in order to perk back up after a long morning spend studying for finals. There’s still about another ten people in front of them and the couple at the front are reading orders off what looks to be a rather long list. They’re probably going to be here for a while yet. “Before you answer, take whatever number you come up with and add about ten to it just to be on the safe side.”

 

               “Ah, but you can’t add ten to forever.” Victor winks and Chris chuckles at his side. Victor grins and throws an arm around his friend’s neck, rightfully thinking Chris will appreciate his joy more than Yurio will at the current moment. “Chris, we’re getting married!”

 

               “ _Yes, you are, my dear. And you are a very, very lucky man, indeed_.” They take another step forward, Victor still hanging off his best friend. He’s now gone back to holding his hand out in front of him in order to admire his ring again and he ignores the sounds of Yurio gagging in the background. “ _Remember, you did make a promise to me once upon a time to be your best man._ ”

 

               “ _I have not forgotten, my friend._ ” They lean their heads together and both sigh as Victor tilts his hand one way and then the other again so that the light curves along the soft gold. “ _I am lucky, aren’t I?_ ”

 

               “ _The luckiest_.” Chris agrees and the line moves again so they separate, mostly to ensure Yurio doesn’t become violent again. “Have you discussed any wedding plans, yet?”

 

               “Not at all!” Victor chirps happily. “Finals are taking up most of our time these days. The last thing we need right now is to be stressed out about planning an international wedding. There will be plenty of time for that after graduation.”

 

               “I look forward to the invite.” They take another step forward as space become available. “Have you told your families the good news.”

 

               “Of course. That was the first thing we did the next morning.”

 

               “Oh? Not that night?” Chris waggles his eyebrows and Victor send him the smuggest look he can manage.

 

               “You know I never kiss and tell, Christophe.” Victor winks in return and there is the tell-tale grumble coming from behind them to warn Victor to dial it back a bit. “They were all thrilled. I think Mama was about to book a flight for the express purpose of hugging the life out of Yuri. His family was excited as well. His mother couldn’t find any English words for a full ten minutes.”

 

               Thinking about it still brought a smile to his face. The way Yuri’s mother had clapped and almost burst into tears, turning to her husband and chattering away in rapid-fire Japanese while Mari teased Yuri with the phrase “I told you so” repeated over and over again. How when it was time to call his own parents, Victor’s mother hadn’t been much better when it came to the waterworks. She had been so excited that she had jumped out of her seat and danced around for a full three minutes before she grabbed the computer away from where Victor’s father was giving them his calm, but proud, congratulations and spun it around with her until they were all dizzy and laughing.

 

               The queue moves again and they take another step forward.

 

               “Well, impressing the parents is the most important step. Sounds like you are doing well enough on that front.” Chris digs in his pocket and pulls out his phone, scanning a message waiting for him on the screen and typing back a quick response before stowing it. “The lords of the study group are growing anxious about their promised caffeine.”

 

               “Did you tell them we can’t control the fucking queue?” Yurio scuffed a shoe against the tiled floor. “Wish I could. Remind me why I thought coming with you was a good idea?”

 

               “You didn’t. You drew the short straw and then lost against Emil in the subsequent rock/paper/scissors match.” Victor moved over so the other Russian could step up so that he was no longer sulking on the fringes of the conversation. “We were the ones the volunteered out of the goodness of our hearts.”

 

               “You volunteered so you could gossip away from your boyfriends.”

 

               “Nope. I volunteered so that I could gossip away from my _fiancé_.” Victor corrects. God, but if he could fit that word into every single sentence, he would. It had been echoing through his every thought for the past four days as it was.

 

               “ **Oh, for the love of... Yes, we get it. You’re excited. Best thing that’s ever happened to you.** ” Yurio waves a hand through the air. “By this point you’re already practically married. The administration even assigned you to the same room for the second time in a row, no questions asked. Can you _please_ get this out of your system enough to focus on literally anything else for five minutes?”

 

               “Since I owe you one, I suppose I can try. For you.” Victor does have to admit he owes Yurio something for everything he’d done. “Five minutes?”

 

               “At least. Go for more if you feel up to it.” Yurio looked relieved and they stepped forward yet again. Now there were only two people in front of them. “I’ll bet you could even make it to ten if you tried hard enough.”

 

               “Ten might be pushing it, but I’ll certainly try.” Victor flashed what he thought was his most winning smile. “I never have been one to back down from a challenge.”

 

               “In the spirit of changing the subject while sticking with our originally intended purpose of gossiping, what’s up with JJ?” Chris asks.

 

               Victor takes a quick look around the crowded coffee shop, but no one seems to be paying them any mind. “Chris, this is his school. He could have friends here that might hear us.”

 

               “Ha. JJ? Have friends? Not likely.” Yurio smirked.

 

               “You know, the more you protest about not wanting to be friends with him, the more suspicious it looks when you are able to spend more than thirty seconds in a room with him without tossing out an unprovoked insult.” Now it’s Chris on the receiving end of one of Yurio’s more potent glares. “As for being overheard, well, there’s not much for it. Even if Yurio spoke French, it’s a common enough language in Montreal so we’re likely to be understood and overheard in any case and I don’t speak Russian. It’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

 

               “I don’t know what’s up with him, but he’s been much more annoying than usual. I don’t know what was worse: When he was loud and annoying, or when he’s being sulky and annoying.” Yurio was apparently completely fine with gossip when it wasn’t about relationships. “It started as soon as we got here, too.”

 

               “Being home again might be a bit unsettling after being gone for so long.” Victor points out. “Not all of us were going on this trip because it sounded like fun. I’ll be willing to bet more than a few might have signed on to get away.”

 

               Yurio and Chris seem to think about this for a second, but before they can say anything they reach the cashier at long last.

 

               They let Chris place their orders, watching as he flirts with the barista with no shame. It seems to work, too, as Victor notices she slides their marked cups a little closer to the expresso machine than the others as she takes the wad of cash Chris offers her to pay for it.

 

               “Doesn’t it bother your boyfriend when you flirt like that?” Yurio asks as they shuffle away from the register and try to find somewhere to stand where they won’t be pressed too close to any of the other patrons.

 

               “You don’t know Phichit very well, do you?” Chris asks and Victor simply grunts in agreement. He’s more interested in looking at his ring again and, since his promised five minutes of not talking about Yuri or their engagement aren’t up yet, he stays quiet. “He knows very well who I am and I know very well who he is. Now, back to the subject at hand. JJ. What’s up with him?”

 

               They stood around gossiping for several minutes while waiting for their drinks to be ready. It seemed as though no one really knew where JJ’s sudden foul mood had come from, nor did anyone have any further hints as to what was happening in the Leo/Guang Hong/Seung-Gil love triangle Phichit kept pushing, nor even why the tension between Sara and Michele has yet to dissipate. And since Yurio was part of the conversation, Chris and Victor couldn’t exactly discuss the other juicy topic on the table, which was more speculation about what could be brewing between Yurio and Otabeck.

 

               All in all, it wasn’t even the tiniest bit productive.

 

               By the time they had collected the trays of coffee, a lot sooner than Victor had though considering the crowded café, maybe Chris’ flirting had helped after all, Victor was buzzing with the need to get back to his fiancé’s side.

 

               If he had thought being apart from Yuri for any extended period of time was bad before, now it was even worse. It was like an itch that had settled over his entire body, but he couldn’t pinpoint the epicenter for him to scratch it away. He instinctively knew that the only thing that would be able to soothe the feeling was to get back to Yuri’s side as soon as possible. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew the feeling would ease eventually. That there would come a time when he would be able to go more than an hour without his thoughts clouding over and the trill of nervous energy sparking over his skin, but the time was not right now.

 

               Right now every time he caught sight of the glint of gold on his finger, he was overwhelmed by the urge to reach out and grab for Yuri’s hand so that he could see the corresponding gleam side by side.

 

               Chris had been right.

 

               Victor was the luckiest man in the world.

 

~

 

               “Victor… We have to study.” Yuri was pouting and Victor was resolutely trying to stare off to the left of his face without giving away what he was doing. He knew himself well enough to understand that his resolve would not hold up under Yuri’s puppy dog eyes and pouty lips if he were to look the other man directly in the face.

 

               He wasn’t sure there was a person alive who could.

 

               “I know, darling, but your study guides will still be there when you get back and our first exams aren’t until the twelfth.” While Yuri’s pouty face was capable of striking a critical blow to Victor’s resolve, his own arsenal wasn’t exactly empty. Victor deployed his broadest and most flirtatious smile. The one that he knew cased Yuri to go weak in the knees. “It’s just dinner with our friends. Two hours, maybe three and then I promise I’ll leave you alone to study for the rest of the night.”

 

               As soon as he saw the pink flush creeping across the bridge of Yuri’s nose, he knew he’d won.

 

               “Fine, but let’s keep it closer to two hours than three, okay?” Yuri took a step forward and looped his arms around Victor’s neck. Victor’s hands found their favorite place on Yuri’s waist. Victor closed his eyes as they kissed, allowing it to run deep and long and fill his entire body with a pleasant warmth. When Yuri pulled back, he was grinning softly, glasses pushed slightly askew, and Victor’s heart skipped several beats before settling back into its normal rhythm. “Where did they want to go?”

 

               “I’m not sure.” Right then Victor wasn’t even sure of his own name. Not with Yuri still pressed up against him and smiling at him as though there wasn’t anyone in the entire universe that mattered more. “I think Phichit was supposed to text me the details. Or post it in the group chat? Or… Smoke signals?”

 

               Yuri laughed, then. Full and deep and mesmerizing.

 

               “You know, being a stuttering mess is usually my job.” Yuri teased, rubbing a thumb along the juncture where Victor’s neck met the slope of his shoulders. Victor tried to focus on that point of contact in the hopes that it would help clear his thoughts if he wasn’t overwhelmed by _everything_.

 

               “You are going to be the death of me, Yuri Katsuki.” Victor whispered, sliding his hands off Yuri’s hips and up to where they could press firmly against the small of his back.

 

               “I won’t be Yuri Katsuki for long…”

 

               “Oh, god…” Victor’s breath caught in his lungs and he buried his face into Yuri’s shoulder. “God, Yuri. You can’t just _say_ things like that.”

 

               “Why not? It’s the truth.” To Victor’s credit, there was a certain breathlessness to Yuri’s words as well and he wasn’t trying to pull away from Victor’s tight embrace. “We should talk about that, shouldn’t we? What we want to do with our names?”

 

               Now Victor did pull back. Yuri’s face was bright red, but he looked determined. Like now that he had found the courage to have this conversation he was going to see it through no matter how embarrassed it made him.

 

               “I’m fine with anything.” It was true. Victor couldn’t care less what the name on his passport read so long as the world knew he was tied to this wonderful man for the rest of his life. “Did you have a preference?”

 

               “Well… I was thinking about it…” Which was more than Victor had been doing, but it was sweet, in a way, that Yuri was still the practical one. That even if Victor was fine going with the flow, Yuri cared enough to have an opinion and was now comfortable enough to share it. “What do you think about hyphenation? You said… You said that you wanted us to be partners and equals. It’s like… Like we’re combining two into one… Oh, that sounded a lot better inside my head…”

 

               “It sounded perfectly fine outside of your head.” Victor pressed a chaste kiss to Yuri’s lips and grinned as he felt the muscles at the base of Yuri’s spine relax under his hands even through his shirt. “I love it.”

 

               Victor knew Yuri probably wanted to ask if he was sure. He thought he could see the question perched there on Yuri’s tongue. The urge for Yuri to know that Victor wasn’t just saying that because he thought that’s what Yuri wanted to hear.

 

               He also knew Yuri wouldn’t give voice to the question. That he was trying not to let his anxiety control his relationship. That he wanted Victor to know there was trust there, running solid and slow between the choppy surface of Yuri’s emotions.

 

               So, since Yuri wouldn’t say it, Victor did. Showing that Yuri didn’t ever have to ask for Victor’s support. Didn’t have to ask because it would always be there.

 

               “I mean it, my love.” Victor kissed the tip of Yuri’s nose. Placed a kiss on each cheek. His forehead, his chin, and finally, another for his lips. “It is perfect.”

 

               If it hadn’t been for Chris and Phichit coming to find them, they probably would have been late for dinner.

 

~

 

               It was freezing while they made the short walk from campus to a restaurant a few streets over. Yuri glanced up at the sky, and the dark clouds that were hanging overhead, growing ever darker as the sun went down and the wind kicked up. The news was predicting snow and Yuri huddled deeper into his coat for warmth.

 

               Victor’s hand was in his, stuffed deep inside Yuri’s pocket. Another compromise since Victor was adamant that they don’t wear gloves even for a second so as to ensure their rings would always be on display whenever their hands weren’t tucked away inside pockets. Yuri gave into his romantic flights of fancy, and Victor shared a pocket with him with no complaint.

 

               Yuri still wasn’t sure who was coming out the better in that deal, but it didn’t matter much so long as they were both happy.

 

               Since Victor was on his left side, it was his right hand that Yuri was gripping inside his pocket. Yuri could feel the cold bite of the metal ring against the side of his palm. Yuri shifted his grip around so that he could run his little finger along the golden band, smiling to himself as he heard a small gasp fall from Victor’s lips at the motion.

 

               How was this even real?

 

               Yuri was struggling to catch up with the past few days. Fighting to gain his balance again in a world that had gone topsy-turvy. Sure, he had known Victor was up to something for weeks before it had actually happened. Sure, he had made peace with the fact that Victor was going to ask the question and that he was going to say ‘yes’ when he did.

 

               Knowing and being faced with the reality never did tend to match us as far as his feelings were concerned.

 

               It was odd, waking up in the morning to a glint of gold. It often left him feeling like he couldn’t breathe, but in a good way for once. There was something about hearing Victor putter around the dorm room while Yuri tried to push away the final dregs of sleep and knowing that this was definitely going to be the rest of his life. That he had the evidence to prove it now, instead of just vague wordings and unspoken promises.

 

               “You seem lost in thought tonight.” Victor’s voice cut through Yuri’s spiraling internal reverie and Yuri looked over at him. His blue eyes were soft in this lighting, the expression on his face one of love and concern. Yuri forced his heart to slow and prayed Victor couldn’t feel the tremors in his hand.

 

               “Worrying about finals.” That wasn’t entirely wrong. Yuri’s perfectionism always put him on edge so close to exam season. There was a not at all small portion of his brain chastising him for being out with his friends when there was revising to do, but he had been successfully ignoring it for the most part. Victor seemed to accept the explanation, though, so Yuri ran with it. That was much easier than trying to explain the other snags and snarls in his thought processes right now. “I’ll be much calmer once they’re done.”

 

               “I understand.” Victor squeezed his hand and bumped against his side. Yuri didn’t even bother to second guess his statement. If there was one thing Victor had proven to him time and time again these past eleven months it was that he did understand. Against all odds, Victor understood him better than he understood himself most of the time. “I did promise we won’t be out too long. I know you wanted to stay, but you’re going to burn out all your brain cells if you work too hard.”

 

               “I’ve been telling Yuri that for years.” Yuri almost jumped out of his skin as he heard Phichit’s bright voice from behind them. He had completely forgotten Chris and Phichit were walking with them. They had been caught up in their own quiet conversation and Yuri had been so focused on Victor he hadn’t even been trying to follow it. “You’ll probably have better luck at getting him to listen to you than I ever did.”

 

               “I sure hope so.” Victor pulled Yuri even closer at those words and Yuri allowed himself to melt into the curve of Victor’s side. He was rewarded with a soft kiss to his temple. “I plan to take good care of him.”

 

               If anyone else had said that, Yuri would have fought them tooth and nail in order to get them to take it back. The last thing he had ever wanted was someone to think he needed to be taken care of, like he wasn’t capable of doing it himself. Victor… Victor was different, though. Yuri wasn’t quite sure when that had happened, but it had. When Victor said he planned to take care of Yuri it was because he wanted to do it, not because Yuri needed him to. That was a distinction Yuri hadn’t even realized existed until Victor had come into his life.

 

               And Yuri wanted to take care of Victor in return.

 

               “Are we almost there yet?” Phichit’s teeth were chattering and Yuri felt the strong pull of sympathy. He remembered Phichit’s first December in Tokyo and how he’d almost cried the first time the temperature had hit 0. They’d spent that whole day drinking hot chocolate under electric blankets while Phichit lamented the tropical weather he’d left behind. “I’m about to turn into a popsicle.”

 

               “Shouldn’t be too much longer.” Chris’ long legs quickly guided the pair up them so they were even with Yuri and Victor now. “I think it’s just around the corner.”

 

               “It is.” Yuri confirmed. No one seemed surprised at all that Yuri was more aware of where they were and where they were going. “JJ said it was a smaller place. Easy to miss. We might want to start keep an eye out.”

 

               They slowed down a little, even though they were all shivering and looking forward to being indoors somewhere heated. Even Chris and Victor, who were usually unflappable in the face of cold weather, were huddle a little deeper in their coats and were keeping less distance than usual with their respective boyfriends in an attempt not to let any excess warmth escape.

 

               “Ah, here it is.” Victor is the one who notices the recessed entrance to the place where they are supposed to meet their friends and he extends his much longer stride as soon as he does, causing Yuri to stumble along behind him, their hands still tangled together inside Yuri’s coat. “Come on, my dearest. Let’s get you warm.”

 

               Yuri didn’t have the words to say right then to tell Victor that he already was warm, in all the ways that mattered. But he didn’t have to.

 

               The look in Victor’s eyes said he already knew.

 

~

 

               Victor can tell Yuri is getting more and more anxious as one hour turned into two and then began to border on three. He was actually impressed his fiancé had lasted this long without showing any outward signs of his desire to leave, but right now he looked about ready to just out of his skin.

 

               Looking around the table, he can tell no one else seems to be in any hurry to go. They had ordered desserts about twenty minutes ago and a fresh round of drinks not even ten minutes before as every is nursing those drinks and chatting amiably over remnants of their sweets. While Victor would be perfectly happy to stay, he also is perfectly fine with leaving as well and the last thing he wants is Yuri to stress himself any more than he already clearly has.

 

               “Are you ready to go?” Victor leans over, not that there is much space between them since they had pushed their chairs so close together their hips brush with even the tiniest of motions. He whispers the words in Yuri’s ear and grins as Yuri turns to him with look that is a mixture of relieved and also questioning. “We stayed up late studying last night. I wouldn’t mind turning in early tonight.”

 

               Yuri seems to accept this excuse without a second thought. He nods, glancing down the table at where Phichit is telling story to the delight of half the table. On the other end, JJ is holding court and describing the next album of songs he is going to write, all inspired by Isabella of course, to those closest to his seat.

 

               Grabbing Yuri’s hand again, Victor nods and gets to his feet first, drawing attention from both ends.

 

               “I think we’re going to go ahead and get back. I’ve got a paper due in roughly six hours St. Petersburg time and I’ve honestly barely started it.” That was a lie. He’d finished the paper the night before when the light from Yuri’s computer had been keeping him up anyway. His friends didn’t need to know that, though. “We’ll see you in the library in the morning?”

 

               “See you in the morning.” Phichit chirps and they all exchange their goodbyes before the Thai man launches back into his story.

 

               They separate and Victor goes and settles their tab with the waiter while Yuri collects their coats from where they had been stowed in a closet behind the hostess’ stand. They meet at the door and bundle up before stepping out into the cold night.

 

               “Do you really think it’s going to snow soon?” Yuri is looking up at the sky with his eyes narrowed as though, if he looks hard enough, he can see the incoming snowflakes where they are resting in the clouds above. “It could be nice to have snow on Christmas. Phichit would freak, though.”

 

               “At least he has a good excuse. What’s Yurio’s?” They both laughed at Victor’s comment. It was true. While Phichit might have complained on and off about missing the milder winter temperatures of Bangkok, Yurio had been vicious in announcing his distaste at being trapped in cold weather. “I’m ashamed to call him Russian.”

 

               “He has a right to his own opinion.” Yuri grins. “And he has no compunction with giving that opinion even when it hasn’t been requested.”

 

               Victor laughs at that and is opening his mouth to make another comment when someone slams into his right shoulder and it is only with some quick footwork and Yuri’s quick reaction in grabbing Victor’s arm to help catch his balance that stops them from all going down in a pile on the sidewalk. With Victor being anchored by his fiancé on one side, he is able to steady the person that almost knocked them over with his free hand.

 

               The person grabs his shoulder and turns, dark hair flying around her face as she spins around to face them.

 

               It’s Sara. Her eyes are rimmed in red as though she has been crying and there are puffs of white that burst from between her parted lips as she pants and tries to catch her breath. For a moment she looks like she wants to apologize, but then she seems to see exactly who is it that she’s bumped into and, instead, her face crumples.

 

               “Victor. Yuri.” Her voice trembles and she releases Victor’s shoulder and goes to pull away, but Victor doesn’t let her. He still has a grasp on her upper arm from where he’d caught her fall and he tightens that grip. Sara struggles for a few seconds before giving up. “I’m sorry. I should have been looking where I was going. I’ve got…  I’ve got things I need to do. Um. Studying things.”

 

               “Sara.” Yuri’s voice is calm, but concerned. Sara lets out a deep sigh and Victor finally feel as though he can let her go without risking her trying to bolt on them. “I know this is a stupid question, but are you alright?”

 

 

               “I…” For a moment it looks like Victor might have let go too soon. Sara shuffles from one foot to the other and stares over their shoulders. Victor take a second to look back behind them and sees nothing other than people going about their business. None of their friends seem to have followed them. Sara must notice, too, because the tears are welling up in her eyes again and she sags in on herself. “I don’t know.”

 

               “Do you want to talk about it?” Victor asks. Sara bites her lip and reaches up to wipe at her tears with the end of her sleeve. She nods. “Okay, let’s go somewhere warm?”

 

               He looks to Yuri, the person most likely to know where such a place would be. Victor is not disappointed. “There’s a coffee shop about two blocks down that’s open late. We can get something warm to drink and it’s far enough off the route from the restaurant to the dorm that no one should stumble on us.”

 

               “That sounds perfect.” Victor tries to smooth over the ragged mood with his usual charm and finesse. It works, at least some, as Sara no longer looks like she is about to burst into tears and they walk in companionable silence around the corner and down a side street to the place Yuri mentioned.

 

               Once they step inside the warm coffee shop, Yuri and Sara take up a spot in a booth at the back, tucked away into a corner and impossible to see through the windows that look out onto the street while Victor goes to order them all something to drink. He settles on three hot chocolates and he brings the drinks to the table.

 

               “My Mama always says that hot chocolate can cure even the worst of moods.” Victor announces as he places a mug in front of each of them before sliding into the booth next to Yuri. “The barista says they are open until two because of finals week, so we can take our time.”

 

               “Thank you, Victor.” Sara reaches out and pulls the mug close to her, cupping her hands around it, but not taking a drink. “I really am sorry for running into you. I just… I had to get out of there.”

 

               “What happened?” Yuri asks. He grabs a spoon from a holder at the edge of the table and scoops a small bite of whipped cream off the top of his drink and pops into his mouth.

 

               “Oh, it was Mickey being his usual pig-headed self.” Sara doesn’t look sad any longer. Now she looks angry. “He’s been worse the closer we get to the end of the year. I’ve gotten better at ignoring it but sometimes… Sometimes I just can’t anymore. That’s probably what he wants. To wear me down until I agree to go along with what he wants just to get him to shut up.”

 

               “You don’t have to tell us if you don’t want to.” Yuri is quick to reassure her and Victor nods in agreement. “But if you want to talk, we’ll listen.”

 

               Sara is biting her lips again, her violet eyes flicking back and forth between the two of them as she makes her decision. For a moment, Victor wonders if she is going to tell them anything at all. Eventually she must have made her choice. Sara lets out a huff of air and takes a long drink of her hot chocolate, licking off the whipped cream that is left behind on her top lip and continuing to cradle the mug in her hands.

 

               “Michele is... Well, he’s overprotective of me. I’m sure you’ve noticed?”

 

               “It’s hard not to.” Victor tries to keep his tone light. Sara smiles a bit in response.

 

               “Yes, he makes it fairly obvious.” Sara tucks a strand of hair behind her ear before going on. “It’s partially my parents fault. He’s always been that way on some level, but when we were younger, my parents thought it was cute, so they encouraged him. By the time we were older and it wasn’t so cute anymore, it was too late. He feels like he needs to be there for me and to protect me even when I don’t need or want him there.”

 

               “I signed up for this trip because I wanted to get away from him.” It looks like it pains her to admit this, but she doesn’t falter. “I love him. Dearly. He’s my brother, my twin. We have a connection that I wouldn’t give up for the world, but sometimes I want to just run away. Be my own person for a change. I didn’t think we would both get in. I’m actually pretty sure my father had something to do with it. He has protective streak over his little girl, too.”

 

               “At first, he was just like he always way, but he was getting better.” Sara continues, pausing briefly to take another drink before forging on like she needs to get everything off her chest in one go as though she is afraid she’ll lose her resolve and stop before she can finish if she doesn’t. “Then in Spain Isabella’s father looked over some of my designs and he liked them. He really liked them.”

 

               “Your designs?” Victor asks.

 

               “Sara designs clothing. Half of her wardrobe has been designed by her.” Surprisingly enough, Yuri is the one to provide this answer. Yuri pats Victor on the forearm before turning back to Sara with a smile. “I read your bio. The one they gave us at the beginning of the year. I’m not the best when it comes to a sense of fashion, but I like your designs. It’s easy to see you’re talented.”

 

               “Thank you. Isabella’s father thought so, too. He wants me to move to Madrid next year to intern for him.” Sara takes a deep breath and Victor can’t help but notice the tears are threatening a return. “Mickey doesn’t want me to go. He wasn’t happy with leaving Italy in the first place, and he doesn’t want to relocate to Spain. He won’t hear of me going on my own either. That’s… That’s what we’ve been fighting about these past few months. He’s even threatened to tell Father that I plan to run away with a rich Spaniard and get married and ruin the Crispino name. Which is completely false, by the way, but Father won’t see it that way.”

 

               “Tonight… I don’t know what it was about tonight. After you left everyone was joking about finals and the end of the year and I guess it just hit me. I only have a few weeks left to figure out what I’m going to do about this.” Sara scratches at a tiny chip in the lip of his mug and ducks her head down so that she is looking at the tabletop instead of them. “I know I can’t convince him. Mickey is… Well, he’s Mickey.”

 

               “So don’t convince him.” Victor shrugs as both Yuri and Sara look at him as though he’s said something incredibly surprising. “You’ve already tried doing that and you haven’t gotten anywhere. You have friends. You have Isabella. There are plenty of people who would support you if this is what you really want to do and Michele… He’ll come around. If he really cares about you the way a brother should, he’ll come around.”

 

               Sara is smiling again.

 

               “No, you’re right.” She looks happier now than she has in weeks. “Thanks for listening. It helps, talking to someone. JJ and Isabella know, but they don’t talk about it much. They’ve got their own thing going on and Emil wants to help, but Mickey can be a handful even without throwing this kind of drama into the mix so…”

 

               “Everyone thinks it’s Emil the two of you are fighting over.” Victor can’t help but spill the beans. It’s only fair. Sara has told them something, so, the way he sees it, they should tell her something in return.

 

               Her eyes go wide at that. For a second, Victor worries that he’s said something he shouldn’t have despite his best intentions. Then she is laughing. Sara’s head is thrown back, her long hair cascading down her back and her arms wrapped around her ribcage.

 

               “Oh my god. You guys don’t really think… _Emil and I_?” Now the tears she is wiping away are from her laughter and not sadness. “I don’t even know where to start with that.”

 

               “I kept _telling_ Phichit it wasn’t true.” Victor isn’t sure if Yuri is trying to make excuses or comfort Sara or maybe just throw Phichit to the wolves. Sara doesn’t seem upset, though. If Victor were to hazard a guess he would have to say that she is more amused than anything else.

 

               “Don’t worry about it. I can see how someone might assume.” Sara waves off the apologies that are about to fall from Yuri’s mouth. “No, I don’t have any feelings for Emil at all and Emil doesn’t like me like that. He’s too busy crushing on my brother. Hard. So hard I feel bad for him, honestly. Mickey’s stupid tunnel vision keeps him from seeing it, too. Shit, I’ll bet if they just got together Mickey would be too busy with that to bother trying to keep up with what I’m up to.”

 

               “Oh…” Victor looks back over the limited interactions he’s had with the trio over the course of the year and he is suddenly hit by how obvious it all was. In fact, if it weren’t for Sara and Michele’s fight in Italy muddying the waters he probably would have noticed much sooner. “Wow… I know I’ve been distracted this year, but how could anyone else have missed _that_?”

 

               “I can see how.” Sara’s mood has completely brightened now. “I like Emil. Like as a future brother-in-law if Mickey can ever get his shit together enough to notice when he’s being courted. I’m pretty sure I could get him to walk down the aisle at his own wedding and he’d still be standing at the altar like ‘Why am I here? Is this like a friendship ceremony or something?’ He is worse than clueless.”

 

               “Emil seems just about as determined as Michele. I’m sure something will shake loose.” Yuri states calmly, though Victor can tell he’s just as shocked about that revelation as he is. “As for everything else… Something will work out, and if you ever need anything, even if it’s just a shoulder to cry on, you know where to find us.”

 

               “Thank you, Yuri. And you, too, Victor.” Sara pulls her legs up under her and makes herself comfortable on her side of the booth. “The two of you really do make a good team, you know.”

 

               “Yes, I know. I really do know.”


	35. Chapter 35

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> Apologies for the later than usual update. I was cleared by my doctor to go back to training again along with my PT so I've been trying to make up for a little over a month off. That and we've had a major project begin at work so I'm in lunch meetings and working overtime and super dead in the evenings. It shouldn't be too long between this update and the next, though! *fingers crossed*
> 
> Who's ready for more cold weather snuggles? And crashing a high society party?
> 
> Also, if you want to imagine the 'Welcome to the Madness' teaser trailer towards the end of the chapter when they go rogue at the party, feel free. That's what I was thinking of when I wrote it!

December – Canada

 

               Almost as though the weather had been waiting for the student’s freedom on purpose, it finally began to snow right as they had finished up the last of their finals.

 

               “This isn’t fair. We’ve been cooped up for nearly two weeks and now that we have all this spare time, it’s going to snow?” Phichit was sitting on the window sill in the dorm room Victor and Yuri were sharing. He had his head tilted and was resting it against the window. Victor wasn’t sure why since he was sure the glass was cold and possibly uncomfortable, but when he’d pointed it out a few minutes ago Phichit had muttered something about aesthetics and refused to move. “How mad do you think the administration would be if we just… Flew somewhere warm?”

 

               “At this point, I think they’d be happy to be rid of us.” Victor mutters from where he is propped up with some pillows and tucked away in the corner where the bed met the wall. Yuri was lying on his stomach at Victor’s side, scrolling through emails on his phone and half paying attention to the conversation around him. Unfortunately, finals weren’t the only thing on Yuri’s place and his workload had remained fairly steady even as everyone else’s had evaporated. “What do you think, Yuri? Should we go to the airport and book a flight for somewhere sunny and warm to while away these last few weeks?”

 

               “We promised JJ we would go to a party at his house next weekend.” Yuri didn’t even look up from his phone. “It’s going to be more complicated to go back and forth than just to stay here. Besides, it’s not so bad. Phichit just has a low tolerance to the cold.”

 

               “Hey! I’ve gotten better about it.” Phichit turns his head long enough to send a dirty glare at his friend before looking forlornly out the window again. “Yuri’s right, though. We made a promise and flying around the world on a whim is expensive.”

 

               “We could make it happen if you really wanted to, _my darling angel_.” Chris was sitting on the floor right beneath Phichit’s post and his twisted his back away from the wall in order to have a better view of the boy sitting directly above him. “You know I would do anything for you.”

 

               “JJ wouldn’t miss us at the party.” Victor points out. That much might actually be true. Anytime he was the center of attention he didn’t seem to care too much who was or wasn’t in the audience. “I might not mind the cold, but I’m not going to say ‘no’ to getting warm either.”

 

               “Trust me, he would notice us missing.” Yuri frowns at something he sees on his phone screen. Victor glances down, though he’s not sure why he bothers since most of Yuri’s communications are in Japanese again and, while he’s better at comprehending and speaking the language, he is a long way off from being able to translate those symbols into something meaningful. “We also promised Yurio we would keep helping him practice. He has several auditions with companies in St. Petersburg when he gets back home and we agreed to help him be ready for them.”

 

               “Yurio and Otabeck could come with us.” Chris pushes more even when Victor knows it is time to give up. The Swiss man seems to be able to read the mood of the room now that his latest plea is met with nothing more than a stony silence. “Fine, fine. But one of these days, I’m going to whisk you away, Phichit, and you aren’t going to be able to stop me.”

 

               “You might as well let him do it when the time comes.” Yuri locks his phone and rolls over onto his back, not protesting or trying to wiggle away as Victor pokes and prods him until Yuri’s head is resting in his lap. “They can be quite persistent and persuasive when they want to be.”

 

               “You would know.” Phichit finally decides he’s had enough staring forlornly out the window. Carefully, so as not to kick Chris in the back of the head by accident, the Thai man unfurls his legs out from under him and drops down to the floor. “We should go shopping. Find something to wear to JJ’s party.”

 

               “Go ahead. We can meet up with you later.” Victor doesn’t want to move right now. He’s not entirely sure when or if he will want to. Their room is warm and cozy, Yuri’s head is in his lap and Victor is running his fingers through that impossible softness. Every time he catches a glint of gold from his ring between the inky strands his can feel his heart skip a beat.

 

               Chris and Phichit say their goodbyes, surprisingly lacking the teasing that would usually go with them and they are gone quickly.

 

               They sit in silence for a few long minutes after their friends have gone. Yuri’s breathing is evening out and Victor is almost certain he’s about to slip into sleep. Any other day and Victor might be feeling the tug of boredom right now, but today he’s not. All he feels is calm and content. And a little bit sleepy as well to be perfectly honest.

 

               “Did you really want to go?” Yuri’s voice, hushed in the quiet room, pulls Victor from the edge of dozing off. He blinks a few times and looks down to see Yuri looking back up at him, glasses removed and folded neatly on the bed next to them. Victor must have been showing his confusion in his face because Yuri goes on. “Fly away to someplace warm, I mean. Did you really want to go someplace like that right now?”

 

               “The only place I ever want to be is wherever you are.” Victor murmurs, keeping his own voice so low as not to break the atmosphere.

 

               “Vitya…” Yuri sighed. “Not that I don’t agree…”

 

               “I mean it.” Victor bends over so that their faces are closer together. He brushes Yuri’s bangs off his forehead and smiles. “We’re both exhausted and we have a party to attend this weekend. Now that finals are over, we should rest while we have the chance.”

 

               “Yes, you’re right.” Yuri closes his eyes and breathes in deeply.

 

               “There’s always a first time for everything.”

 

               “Shut up. You’re right all the time.” Yuri reaches up and tangles his fingers in Victor’s hair, holding him in place. There is a peek of brown between his eyelids. Just enough so that Victor knows he’s being watched. “You were right about us.”

 

               Victor nods in agreement. He closes the gap between them. It’s an awkward kiss, since Victor in bending over and their faces are inverted, but they manage and when Victor pulls back, Yuri’s eyes are closed completely again and his breathing is steady and even.

 

               He places a kiss on Yuri’s forehead and then gently maneuvers their bodies around so they are lying flat on the bed, Victor’s back pressed up against the wall and Yuri curled against his chest.

 

               “Goodnight, my love.”

 

               “Mmmm… Goodnight, Vitya.”

 

~

 

               JJ’s party is not exactly what Victor had expected it would be.

 

               For one, JJ had requested their presence in the common area of the dorm four hours before they were set to leave to go over everyone’s outfits for the occasion. Apparently, it was closer to black tie affair rather than end of the year college party and about half the group ended up having to brave the miserable weather to secure outfits that fit the dress code.

 

               For another, the event was supposed to be taking place at JJ’s home. The Canadian just hadn’t warned anybody that it was actually less of a home and more of an estate. Complete with a three story centerpiece of a manor house with towering columns, bright lights strung artistically from balconies and winding around pillars, and large windows that showed the hustle and bustle of well-dressed people within.

 

               “I now completely understand the inspection of our attire now.” They were pouring out of the hired cars that had been provided to them for the occasion. Phichit’s mouth was hanging open as he held out a hand to help Chris out of the car and Victor and Yuri were standing bundling together trying and failing to hide their own surprise.

 

               “Being rich doesn’t instantly make you a good person.” Yurio and Otabeck had also been in their car and the Russian and Kazak were stepping out from the other side. As Yurio’s comments attested, he seemed completely unimpressed and Otabeck was impossible to get a read as always. “I still owe him a kick in the ass for making us wear these expensive fucking suits.”

 

               “I think you should definitely wait to do that until we’re back on campus.” Otabeck’s stoicism in the face of the bright lights and sprawling manor house in front of them helped bolster Victor’s flagging confidence. “Unless you want to show up on the front page of the society section of tomorrow’s paper, that is.”

 

               “Do they still _have_ a society section in the newspaper?” Yurio asks skeptically. “Better yet, do they still have _newspapers_?”

 

               “Old money does keep with some older traditions, it looks like.” Victor allowed his arm to wrap around Yuri’s waist naturally as the car behind them pulled away. They took a few steps toward the well-lit entryway in order to free up some space for more of their friends to step out of their own cars before pausing. “And this definitely looks like old money. The kind where they let a board of directors run their company while they spend summers in the Hamptons kind of old money.”

 

               “I knew JJ had money, but I didn’t know he had this kind of money.” Chris let out a low whistle. “I should have guessed any family that produced him would swing towards the ostentatious side.”

 

               “What I can’t understand is why would he invite us to something like this.” Even Victor had to admit Yurio had a point with that one. The course of the year had proven to almost everyone JJ had invited to come along with him tonight that they were more at home in a bar or club than a fancy party.

 

               In fact, Victor couldn’t think of a single circumstance where any one of them had said or did anything that would make JJ think they would be able to navigate an event such as this without the evening turning out utterly embarrassing for all involved.

 

               “I’d be willing to be bet it’s because he thinks we don’t fit in that we were invited.” Yuri had that serious look on his face. The one that always left Victor thinking his fiancé knew more about what was going on around them than anyone else could hope to. “If I had to do something I didn’t want to do, or play nice with people I didn’t want to spend time with, I know I would feel better if I had friends close.”

 

               Before anyone could make a comment on that, the rest of their group had assembled around then and they all turned towards where Isabella was fiddling with JJ’s tie, looking to him for their cue as to how to proceed.

 

               “You look fine, dear.” Isabella finished with adjusting JJ’s tie and straightens his collar one last time. “Don’t worry. Everything will go well.”

 

               “Yes. Of course.” JJ cleared his throat and looked over at where the whole group was huddled together and shivering. The skies had been clear when they left for the outskirts of Montreal, but now there were little flurries in the air. “I’d like to thank all of you for coming. Um… Enjoy yourselves.”

 

               “Thank you for inviting us. Emil? Care to escort a lady to the ball?” Sara had been in a much better mood since that night spent in a coffee shop with Victor and Yuri. She was practically beaming as she grabbed Emil by the elbow and began to skip up the walk, leaving a red faced and flustered Michele in their wake.

 

               “Good for her.” Victor whispers in Yuri’s ears as the rest of the group makes their way up the rest of the drive. “Sounds like her brother needs a good kick in the butt and she has every right to be the one to deliver it to him.”

 

               “Agreed.” Yuri’s hand is resting on the small of Victor’s back and he can feel when Yuri rubs small circles there as they fall into line in the procession heading towards the party. “Maybe if she makes Michele jealous…”

 

               They are interrupted as they reach the entryway to the house at long last. There are a pair of men dressed in suits at the doorway and they give them their names in order to be checked off the list. Once they are ushered through the doors and into the bright glow of the foyer, there are three women in matching silver dresses that takes their coats and gives them a ticket with a claim number on it.

 

               Following the sound of tinkling glasses and polite laughter, they find themselves in a vast ballroom. Along the sides of the venue are tables with white clothes that have gold and silver trim. Each table has a sparkling centerpiece comprised of white and golden roses with shimmering sliver ribbons and bows wound throughout. Waiters wander around gracefully with trays of champagne and appetizers and there are no less than three tables scattered throughout the room that house bartenders creating mixed drinks.

 

               A band is playing softly on a raised staged at the front of a space that has been cleared for a dance floor. There are a few couples spinning lazily in time to the music, but the vast majority of the guests are milling about the room and carrying on conversations with each other.

 

               “Is this okay?” They had been forced to separate in order to take off their coats, gloves, and scarves, and as Victor speaks he holds out his arm for Yuri to take. The Japanese man does so with no hesitation, looking up at Victor with the ghost of a smile on his lips.

 

               “I’ll survive.” Yuri’s fingers tighten in the crook of Victor’s arm to back up his words. “Let’s just stay away from the alcohol, yes?”

 

               “Anything for you, my love.” Victor agrees quickly. “This does not look like the proper place for our usual brand of drunken shenanigans.”

 

               “This doesn’t look like the proper place for shenanigans of any kind.” Phichit was looking around the room with wide eyes and no small amount of trepidation.

 

               “No, it is not, but we shall be fine, _my little one_.” Chris places a chaste kiss to Phichit’s temple and offers his own arm the way Victor had done. “I have been to many a party like this back home. The principle should be the same even if the locale is not.”

 

               “Yura, if you feel the urge to curse, please do it in Russian.” While they were not arm in arm, Otabeck and Yurio were standing close to each other and Yurio was scanning the room with a wary expression on his face. “Think of it as practice. If you want a spot on a touring company, you will have to go to many events such as this and the ballet will be wanting you to make a good impression on any potential sponsors.”

 

               “I know, I know.” Even though he proclaimed to know, Yurio was still looking very much like he didn’t entirely care. Everything from the hunch of his shoulders to the haughty toss of his head in order to get his bangs out of his face screamed rebellion. “ **Beka, promise me we won’t stay for the whole thing.** ”

 

               “We’ll stay long enough to be polite.” Otabeck promises and then looks over at Victor and Chris, the two people who seem to know the most about a function such as this. “What is long enough to be polite?”

 

               “I would say it depends on what kind of event it is.” Victor’s eyes fall on a massive tree taking up a prominent place off to the right of the raised stage with the band. It has been wrapped in white lights and trimmed with silver and gold ornaments and tinsel. “I would have to say this looks like a Christmas party. Tables around the edges of the room with placards? A Christmas dinner, perhaps. If so, we’ll need to stay through the meal and at least several dances. Three hours minimum depending upon how many courses they are intending on serving.”

 

               “How do you know so much about this stuff?” Phichit asks. “Chris, I understand. His family is prominent in the art scene and you can tell they throw some swanky parties in that house of theirs.”

 

               “Papa has business dealings with some of those who fancy themselves Russian royalty.” Victor grimaces as he remembers how stiff and formal those occasions were compared with the other parties he attends on his family’s behalf where those invited had actually seemed to have a good time. “They aren’t, but they hold onto the illusion and their pockets run deep and they are often happy enough to begin projects and lose interest quick enough. We find some of our best potential investors there. Hands off and happy so long as there are profits to reap.”

 

               “I’m lucky my father chooses to handle his business dealings over dinner and drinks and trips to the onsen.” Yuri is looking less overwhelmed than Victor thought he might, though Victor does note that his fiancé does not drop his arm or move more than a centimeter or two away at any time as they make their way around the room. “Double lucky that Mari is rather fond of that approach over this one as well.”

 

               “Then we will stick close to you.” Yurio doesn’t sound terribly happy about that choice, but he clearly does know enough to recognize when he’s been beat.

 

               It’s not too terrible. The college students all stick out like sore thumbs and they aren’t approached too often. Seung-Gil and Guang Hong pull Chris away for a moment to speak with an art dealer Chris actually knows from his family ties, but other than that they circle the room unmolested.

 

               Dinner is announced and they search for their table, finding it in an out of the way corner of the room. Victor can’t say he’s surprised. JJ’s parents wouldn’t have known what kind of people they were and are obviously taking the safe route and keeping them away from being in the center of attention and far from anyone they might deem important. If Victor were one to care about such things he is sure he would have been very offended. As it is, he is glad for the excuse to stay away from any awkward conversations.

 

               JJ and Isabella are not at their table.

 

               In fact, no one seems to know where they have gone.

 

               “Do you think everything is alright?” Leo is sitting upright in his seat as though he is afraid it’s going to electrocute him if he slouches even a millimeter. “I haven’t seen either of them since we got here.”

 

               “If they’ve got any sense, they’re hiding.” Yurio’s posture is a weird combination of hunched shoulders and straight back. It doesn’t look comfortable, but Victor refrains from pointing that out. It is clear Yurio is on a hair trigger tonight and behaving only because he has to and not because he wants to. “We should be doing that, too. After dinner we should all go hide. This fucking place is more than big enough.”

 

               “He has a point.” Emil scratches his chin as he uses his superior height to get a better view of the room than most of them can. “This place is certainly large enough to get lost in. I’d feel better if we could find JJ and Isabella before we disappear, though. It doesn’t seem fair to leave them hanging out to dry.”

 

               “As much as I hate to admit it… He has a point.” And Yurio did look like it physically pained him to say so. “I still hate his stupid face, but I wouldn’t wish this hell on my worst enemy.”

 

               The conversation is interrupted as their first course is served. Victor and Chris take a moment to chat up the waiter in French and are happy to announce there will only be five courses this evening so dinner will only feel interminable instead of actually being so.

 

               Chris comes to their rescue when it comes to which utensils they should use for each course, and their table is left more or less alone by the other guests. Not that any of them particularly cared, but Victor did note the slight none the less. He doubted he would ever see any of these people again, so he didn’t comment, but it was clear that the others felt it, too.

 

               After dinner they disperse a bit. Sara and Emil wander off towards the tree and Michele follows them in full sulk mode. Victor isn’t completely sure what she might be up to, but he silently wishes her luck. She deserves some sort of closure.

 

               Guang Hong, Leo, and Seung-Gil have noticed some framed paintings on the wall of the hallway that led to the ballroom and they excuse themselves to go have a look, Seung-Gil muttering something about maybe having caught a glimpse of a Monet he wants to get a closer look at.

 

               That leaves the rest of them to begin to meander aimlessly around the dance floor. No one is truly utilizing it yet, so they give it a wide berth as well. The last thing Victor wants to do is draw attention to themselves no matter how much he enjoys dancing with Yuri and he doesn’t have to confer with the other man to know he feels the same way.

 

               As they weave around a thick pillar they find themselves face to face with JJ and Isabella who are deep in a heated discussion.

 

               “I don’t care what my parents’ friends say.” JJ is frowning and Isabella has her arms crossed over her chest. “What matters is what my family thinks and they love you.”

 

               Instantly recognizing a conversation they did not want to become interlopers to, their small group ground to a halt and tried to back away. They were too late, however, as Isabella noticed them over JJ’s shoulder and her face brightened.

 

               “Oh, thank god!” She hurried forward reach out to grab the nearest person to her, which turned out to be Yuri, and pulling him into a fierce hug. “We’ve been looking all over for you.”

 

               “For Yuri in specific or just us in general?” Phichit is quick to ask, though there is a note of hesitance in his tone. Almost as though he wants to leave the window open for them to back out if that is what either Isabella or JJ really want.

 

               “Everyone in general.” Isabella releases Yuri, who pats her awkwardly on the shoulder, but doesn’t step away. “Speaking of, where are the rest of us?”

 

               “Scattered here and there.” Chris waves a hand through the air. “This is… Well, it is a nice party, JJ. Thank you for extending the invitation. You didn’t have to.”

 

               “It is a nice party.” JJ acts as though it pains him to admit it. That’s interesting, Victor thinks to himself. “My parents throw it every year in the lead up to Christmas. They hate it, my siblings hate it, and I most certainly hate it, but tradition is tradition.”

 

               “Traditions can be broken.” Yurio is scowling, head tilting to the side and eyes narrowed as though he has noticed there is something distinctly off about the whole proceeding and he is trying to pinpoint exactly what it might be. “Some of them desperately need to be broken.”

 

               “He has a point.” Otabeck stated. “No one has spoken more than four words to us all evening and it’s clear they only speak to you because of who you are. Is that really what you want?”

 

               “Of course not.” JJ truly did seem offended that someone could think that of him. “I know I can be arrogant, but only about things I’ve actually accomplished. Like my music. There isn’t any skill in being born into the right family.”

 

               “No, but you can’t hide from it either.” Isabella round back on her fiancé and poked him in the chest with a perfectly manicured finger. “You know I love you, JJ, but you need to make a choice. Either come to these things as yourself or give in and be what they want you to be.”

 

               “But my parents…”

 

               “Your parents support you no matter who you are or what you do.” Isabella’s face softened now. “They’re just as proud of you as I am, and I know they wouldn’t want you to hide that person away just because you are concerned about what a few nobodies think.”

 

               Victor was now one hundred percent sure they had walked in on something they shouldn’t have, but JJ didn’t seem embarrassed or upset by them being there.

 

               “They aren’t nobodies…” JJ looks like he wants to protest further, but instead his face softens. “You’re right. As far as I’m concerned, they are. I don’t need society acquaintances.”

 

               Now JJ turned towards Otabeck and Yurio. “I have an idea for how to liven this party up. Otabeck, Yurio, think you can help me?”

 

               “We thought you would never fucking ask.”

 

~

 

               “How do we always end up in these kinds of situations?” Yuri was whispering as they circled the room along the wall, trying not to draw attention to themselves as they waited for their cue.

 

               “I’m not sure.” Victor admits, also in a whisper. Up ahead he can see Chris and Phichit moving as well, Chris brushing off a passing waiter’s offer of some sort of canapé as they go. “It might have something to do with the type of people we hang out with. They’re all pretty much troublemakers.”

 

               “I agree. After this, we definitely need to get a better friend group.” These words were said in a more normal tone of voice and Yuri smirks as Phichit cranes his neck around to send him a pouty glance before turning back around and whispering something in Chris’ ear. “Although, I have to admit, I never did think that Yurio would come up with something like this in a million years.”

 

               “Really? This sounds exactly like something he would do. Cause a scene. Go out in a blaze of glory.” Victor shrugs. “Scandalize the whole world. I’m impressed he’s held off this long.”

 

               “Fair point.” They pause, hovering just slightly behind one of the pillars. “I wish they would hurry up about it, though. Before I second guess going along with something that is definitely going to get us thrown out from this fancy high society party. I am not nearly drunk enough for this.”

 

               “It’s not too late. You can shotgun some champagne…”

 

               “No, Victor. I’m not doing that.”

 

               Victor hadn’t expected he would. Although he was a bit surprised Yuri had agreed to go along with Yurio and JJ’s plan with a minimum of panicking and fussing. Maybe he was getting better at the whole ‘public humiliation’ thing if he was doing it on purpose? Or maybe it was because, in some strange way, they were helping a friend?

 

               Before Victor could ask if Yuri was really sure he was okay with helping or if we would rather sit it out, they have run out of time. The lights in the room flicker and then go out completely and the band on the stage goes quiet.

 

               There are some gasps and nervous chuckles that fill the room. Victor can feel Yuri tense at his side. Well, if they are going to back out now would be the time.

 

               Yuri takes his hand and Victor knows they are not backing out.

 

               The lights around the stage flicker once more and then come back on, casting a purple light throughout the room this time instead of gold. There is the brief sound of feedback for a moment, and a silhouetted figure takes center stage, features difficult to make out in the low lighting, but it is obvious there is a guitar strung around the man’s neck.

 

               Then the lights go bright and the music starts.

 

               With the brighter lighting, it’s easy to see that it is JJ up on the stage, Otabeck behind him with a tablet plugged into the sound system and a pair of head phones around his neck. The music starts, a deep, thumping bass at first and then JJ comes in on his guitar, the chords wailing through the air as the lights begin to pulse in time with the beat.

 

               As soon as JJ starts belting out some vocals, Yurio leaps into action sliding onto the dance floor on his knees before launching himself into a complicated series of turns, leaps, and steps.

 

               Yurio has his shirtsleeves rolled up to his elbows and as he comes out of his first spin he tosses his jacket out into the crowd. There is a wave of gasps and a few screams that are mostly drowned out by the music and as the song comes to it crescendo and Yurio sides across the floor on his knees again, shift rucking up to show off his abs, Victor places his hand on the small of Yuri’s back and they take their cue.

 

               Everyone moves out onto the dance floor now as the song changes to something that is also fast paced. Victor and Yuri are right next to Phichit and Chris and they take advantage of the fact that all four of them have more than just a passing knowledge of dance. They spin and dip and change partners and Victor tries to ignore the security guards he can see circling the floor hesitantly as they try to decide if this is something they should stop or not.

 

               Their friends are dancing more along the outside edges of the dancefloor. Isabella and Sara are being spun around Emil while Michele cuts in at every opportunity, sometimes getting his sister and sometimes getting Isabella as a partner. Guang Hong, Leo, and Seung-Gil are trying to grab others and pull them into the party with limited success. There are a few younger guests that jump right in, but for the most part everyone cringes away. Yurio is now on the stage with JJ, showing off the height of his jumps and his flexibility.

 

               They get through two more songs, laughing and dancing and starting to have so much fun they don’t even notice the crowds any longer before the music stops abruptly and the main lights come back on.

 

               “I think we’ve over stayed our welcome!” Chris shouts and the whole group takes off towards the exit, stumbling over each other and laughing the whole way out the door and into the cold night with security guards on their heels.

 

               Their cars are waiting for them along the circle drive and they all pile in, which shouted instructions from JJ to have their drivers follow his car and for them to be ready to keep the party going.

 

               All their coats had been stuffed into the car carrying Victor, Yuri, Phichit, Chris, Otabeck and Yurio. Even when planning spur of the moment takeovers of fancy parties, Yuri had thought to be prepared for the aftermath and the very real possibility that they would not be able to retrieve their things on their own.

 

               It's a welcome preparation. Especially since this seems to be the party where Yurio has lost his shirt at long last.

 

               The cars take them back to the city, and they are still riding high from their impromptu performance as they arrive at a park. There is already a layer of white on the ground from the semi-constant snowfall earlier in the week and as they pile out and dismiss the cars, fresh flakes begin to fall.

 

               They retrieve their heavy winter coats and run off into the park.

 

               It doesn’t take long for someone to throw a snowball. From there everything escalates and before Victor knows it they are in the middle of an all out war.

 

               Yuri grabs his hand and pulls them out of the line of fire and behind a thick tree. There are shapes moving all around them in the dark, cries and warnings yelled in English and other languages as their friends run around pelting each other with snow. Victor has his back against the rough back of the tree and Yuri is at his side, peering around the trunk and squinting into the darkness. He’d taken his contact off in the car and has his glasses on in their place now, hair falling from its slicked back style as the gel gives way to the snow melting in his hair. This causes a few wayward strands to fall forward onto his forehead as his glasses glint in the light from the moon and the streetlamps down the way.

 

               Even in the dark, Victor can see that his cheeks are flushed and his grin wide. White clouds of vapor hover in front of his parted lips with every sharp exhale. His eyelashes are dark and wet behind the lenses and his brown eyes are focused and bright, skittering one way or another as he tracks the movements of their friends across the open field.

 

               Victor doesn’t think. He just moves, grabbing Yuri by his hips and pull him close against his chest, cutting off his fiancé’s surprised cry with his lips as Yuri instantly melts into him as though it is exactly where he belongs.

 

               As far as Victor is concerned, it is. And now he never has to let Yuri go again.

 

~

 

               They stumble into the dorm at around two am, laughing and joking and shivering from their snowball fight and the walk back to campus from the park. Yuri has his coat buttoned all the way to his chin and he is pressed against Victor for warmth.

 

               Victor guides them to one of the couches and Yuri sinks down into the cushions, relieved to be back where it is heated and tired from their long night. He allows Victor to unwrap the scarf from around his neck and unbutton his coat, but Yuri makes a small noise of protest as Victor goes to try and pull the coat down off his shoulders.

 

               “No. Too cold still. Leave it.” Yuri pats the empty cushion next to him. “Come warm me up.”

 

               “I would be honored, my love.” Victor shrugs his own coat and scarf off and tosses them onto the floor and into the rapidly expanding pule of outwear that is appearing there as everyone else does the same. He slides into the spot Yuri has left for him and tugs Yuri so that he is half in his fiancé’s lap. “Are you alright?”

 

               “Just cold.” Yuri sniffles a bit before taking off his gloves and dropping them into the pile, eyes drawn to the ring on his right hand as he does so. He still can’t believe it, even over a week later. Can’t believe that Victor had really done it. That they were really going to have a future together.

 

               That this was _permanent_.

 

               He still didn’t know how he had done it. How he had caught Victor’s attention and managed to keep it this long.

 

               How someone like Victor could fall in love with him enough to not just want forever, but need it.

 

               “I still say it’s not fair. I mean, look at them. Adorable.” Yuri turns his head and he can feel his brows pull together in confusion at Chris’ words. He feels the rumble of Victor’s chuckle against his ribs where they are touching chest to chest even through the thick layer of Yuri’s coat. “Victor, share you secret. How did you do it?”

 

               “How did I do what?” Victor sounds amused and Yuri pushing back the exhaustion pulling at the edges of his concentration and tries to focus more on the conversation at hand. “Get the most wonderful man on the face of the planet to put up with me long enough to agree to spend the rest of our lives together?”

 

               Yuri rolls his eyes and sits up a little straighter. “Both of you stop. Besides, the question should be reversed anyway.”

 

               “What are you talking about?” Leo chimes in from the chair he’d grabbed for himself. “Don’t get me wrong, Victor’s great and all, but you’re the one everyone had a crush on back in January.”

 

               “I… No… Wait, what?” Yuri suddenly couldn’t form complete sentences. Was this a joke? Why would Leo joke like that? “What are you talking about?”

 

               “Exactly what it sounds like he was talking about.” Phichit and Chris are on the couch opposite them and Yuri’s best friend is grinning at him like he’s the cat that caught the canary. “Face it, Yuri, you are quite the catch. There were a lot of broken hearted people when you chose Victor.”

 

               “Not that it was ever much of a contest. Everyone could see from day one that you only had eyes for him.” Chris pointed out. “Lucky son of a bitch. Because of my loyalty to my best friend, I didn’t even throw my hat in the ring. Ah, but such is the way of true love.”

 

               “I do appreciate your restraint, my friend.” Yuri turns around at Victor’s words and sends him what he hopes is an intense glare. It seems his message get across because Victor starts to whine. “Yuri… Don’t look at me like that. We’re just being honest.”

 

               “I-I… But…” Yuri still doesn’t have words for what he’s thinking or feeling. It’s mostly a combination of confused, irritated, and self-conscious.

 

               “Alright. Let’s settle this once and for all.” Phichit sit upright and places his hands on his knees, surveying the room with a glint of mischief in his eyes that has Yuri’s stomach rolling around with nerves. That look has never once meant anything good for Yuri. “Everyone who has had a crush on Yuri at some point since meeting him, raise your hand.”

 

               Every single hand goes up. Some blatantly, some with a little hesitation… Yurio’s is barely higher than his shoulder, but it is there.

 

               “W-What!?”

 

               “I don’t know why this surprises you.” Seung-Gil states calmly as everyone lowers their hands. Yuri feel like his face is on fire and he knows that he’s doing a rather apt impression of a fish out of water right now. “You are a very logical choice for an infatuation. If I weren’t engaged myself, I might have been more tempted to make my own move.”

 

               “What!?”

 

               Now everyone was staring at Seung-Gil. Well, at least that meant they weren’t staring at him anymore, Yuri thought. To the Korean’s credit, he didn’t seem phased in the slightest at being the new center of attention. He merely looked confused.

 

               “Have I not mentioned that before?”

 

               “No, you haven’t fucking mentioned that before.” Yurio, as always, is the first to retrieve his language skills. For his part, Yuri is still too stunned from what came before Seung-Gil’s admission to really have caught all the way up to the new issue at hand. “You’d think it was something that might have come up from time to time.”

 

               “Oh…” Seung-Gil seems to turn this information over in his mind for a moment. “My apologies. I suppose I’m just used to everyone already knowing. We have been engaged for a long time.”

 

               “Seriously?” Leo has twisted around in his chair to stare as Seung-Gil is currently located on the loveseat behind him. “How long?”

 

               “Since we were fourteen.” The Korean shrugs as a few new gasps fill the air. “It’s more or less an arranged marriage of sorts but Seo-Hyeon and I have been close friends since birth. He is fond of me and I of him. It worked out quite well. We’re to be married when he graduates next spring.”

 

               “Oh… Wow…” Victor, who Yuri has never known not to have at least something to say in any given situation, seems to also have run out of words. “Um… Congratulations?”

 

               “Thank you.” Seung-Gil nods curtly and Yuri get the feeling this part of the conversation is over.

 

               “Okay…” Phichit has clearly had the wind knocked out of him along with everyone else, but he perks back up as he catches sight of Yuri out of the corner of his eye. Even though, Yuri sees it coming before he even opens he mouth, he is still very tempted to strangle his best friend until he can’t speak anymore. “Back to the original topic. It’s time for you to face the music, Yuri. You’ve broken every heart in this room except for Victor’s. Lucky bastard that he is.”

 

               Yuri opens his mouth, but before he can protest Sara speaks up. “Phichit’s right. It really did break my heart when we found out you were into guys.”

 

               “Definitely.” Isabella nods enthusiastically even as she grabs her own fiancé’s hand. “I love you, JJ, I really do, but to get a chance to date Yuri Katsuki…”

 

               “I’m not upset at all.” JJ smirks. “We did agree that Yuri would be both of our ‘one exceptions’, ages ago.”

 

               “I… Huh?” Yuri sure wishes his English would come back to him soon. It would be a lot easier if it would.

 

               “He didn’t break my heart.” Yurio scoffs. There is a pink tinge to his cheeks and Yuri notices that he is looking more at the floor than anyone else as he goes on. “But if he was like three years younger or something… You know. **Oh, fuck off, Beka.** ”

 

               Otabeck was poking Yurio in the side at this point, an eyebrow raised and obviously egging him on. “ **Don’t feel bad, Yura. You just saw that everyone thinks he’s cute. You aren’t alone.** ”

 

               “ **I said, fuck off!** ”

 

               Yuri is now regretting learning Russian.

 

               “You should be flattered, Yuri.” Guang Hong is grinning at him. Yuri find himself subconsciously leaning closer against Victor with all eyes still on him. “You really are a great person. Can you blame us?”

 

               “I… I really don’t know what to say.”

 

               He didn’t. He really didn’t. Yuri knew three languages fluently and was competent enough in a fourth to be able to follow basic conversation, but there wasn’t anything coming to mind that he could say in response to this.

 

               It wasn’t even that the others found him attractive, though that confused the hell out of him as well. What was so great about messy hair and glasses and those silvery stretch marks from when he hadn’t been able to control his binge eating in high school?

 

               So, although he was definitely confused about that aspect as well, it was more than that. It was how they weren’t just saying he had a great ass or something like that. They were saying they liked him. Like as a person. Stutters and blushes and awkward silences and all.

 

               What the actual hell?

 

               “Now, now everyone. Stop embarrassing my fiancé.” Victor’s voice was filled with pride and that alone suddenly made Yuri want to curl up in a ball on the floor and just _die_. Yuri had never thought he was someone to be proud of. Definitely not someone that would inspire pride simply by existing. He felt Victor press a kiss against his temple.

 

               There were some grumbles around the room, but Phichit, who had obviously been ignoring Yuri’s mental pleas to stop this before, seemed to get the hint now and launched into a play by play of getting kicked out of the party a few hours ago.

 

               Not that Yuri could pay attention just then. He felt as though his whole world had been rocked to the very core and it wasn’t long before Victor made an excuse to excuse themselves and drag Yuri away and back to their room.

 

               “I can’t believe Phichit did that.” The door had barely closed behind them before Yuri was off, out of Victor’s arms and pacing the floor. He shrugged out of his coat, now far too hot to tolerate the thick layer and chucked it somewhere into the room. “No, wait. I take that back. I completely believe he did that. Sometimes I actually hate him.”

 

               “No, you don’t, love.” Victor bypasses the stretch of floor Yuri has claimed for his pacing and flops down on the bed to watch his progress through those infuriatingly gorgeous blue eyes. “Why does it still surprise you that people find you not only attractive, but easy to love as well?”

 

               “You know why.” Yuri manages to get out through his clenched jaw. Even if Victor didn’t know, Yuri would rather die than say out loud that the reason he can’t believe anyone could find him _easy_ to love is because he so often has problems loving himself. “I’m sorry… I’m just… It’s weird.”

 

               “I don’t find it strange at all, but if you do…” Victor has his head tilted, causing the fringe of his bangs that usually hangs over his left eye to slide away towards his ear. “Come here.”

 

               “What? Why?”

 

               “Just trust me and come here.” Victor hold his arms out for emphasis and Yuri only hesitates for another few seconds before giving in and sliding into Victor’s lap.

 

               They sit for a moment in total silence. Yuri has his head tucked under Victor’s chin and with his ear pressed right above the dip in Victor’s collar bone, he can heart the faint beating of Victor’s heart in his chest. It’s slow and steady and all the tension Yuri had been holding in his body released in one dizzying rush. He can feel the curve of Victor’s smile against his scalp and Victor hums low in his throat, rocking them both back and forth.

 

               Just when Yuri is about to drift off to sleep, convinced Victor didn’t have anything to say after all, Victor speaks.

 

               “I love you.” Victor places a finger on Yuri’s lips as he pulls away and turn in Victor’s lap, mouth half open to say something that probably wasn’t very smart. “Sh. Say whatever you want to say after. Let me speak first, please?”

 

               Yuri nods, shifting to put a few more centimeters of space between them. He doesn’t want to, but he knows it will be easier to focus this way and it seems as though whatever Victor wants to say is important to him.

 

               “Maybe I’m biased because I love you, but it doesn’t seem strange to me in any way that the others have found something in you to love as well.” Victor reaches up and runs his thumb along Yuri’s cheekbone. Yuri leans into the touch, craving the contact in a way that used to terrify him, but now only causes his heart to flutter happily in its place. “You might not believe it, but you could have had your pick of anyone on this trip. Of anyone in Japan most likely. You are beautiful and smart and all those other things I have told you a million times and will tell you a million more, every day for the rest of our lives if I have to in order to get you to finally believe it.”

 

               “You could have had anyone, but you chose me.”

 

               Yuri smiles. He leans forward and kisses Victor, soft and sweet, trying to convey what he sometimes has trouble putting into words. He can feel his fiancé’s hand tighten their grip on his hips, holding him in place. As though Yuri would slip away if he didn’t keep him anchored there. As though there was anywhere else Yuri could ever want to be than right here.

 

               “I would choose you again.” Yuri whispers. He can feel his cheeks burn again, but this time he doesn’t worry about it. “I love you, Vitya. Sometimes… Sometimes I don’t always see what you see, but whenever I doubt myself you are always there to remind me.”

 

               They kiss again, this time deeper, more firm. Victor always has words. Always has flowery prose or long-winded exaltations about every aspect of Yuri. It’s nice to know that, every so often, words fail him, too. That actions are the only thing he can use to get his point across.

 

               Yuri pulls back, placing a hand to mirror the one Victor still has on his cheek. He can feel the cold metal against his skin and the matching band on his own finger glitters in the moonlight streaming in through the window over their bed.

 

               They had chosen each other. The how and the why didn’t matter. Right now, all that mattered was the future.

 

               Their future.

 

               Together.


	36. Chapter 36

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> French - Italics  
> Russian - Bold  
> Japanese - [Bracketed]
> 
> We're almost there my friends. This chapter will be Christmas, and the year long trip will be drawing to its inevitable end. Just one more chapter to go!

December – Canada

 

               “Have you thought about what we might do for your birthday?” Chris and Victor have sprawled out on a pair of couches facing each other in the common area of the dorm. It is early in the morning and Yuri is still dead to the world. Victor isn’t sure where Phichit is, and Chris hadn’t elaborated, but he’s sure that if it’s something important he’ll be told eventually. “You are the last of us to turn another year older…”

 

               “I wouldn’t say ‘no’ to an intimate party in the evening, but I think I’ll be spending most of the day with Yuri. Or perhaps he wants to do something during the evening and we’ll be free during the day?” Victor taps his index finger against his lip as he thinks. “I’ll have to ask Yuri to see if he had anything planned. He might have been wanting to surprise me.”

 

               “Well, the night before is supposed to be a huge party for Christmas Eve, so Phichit and I figured everyone might be partied out by then.” Chris reaches for where his phone is about to slip off the edge of one of the cushions and hold it up to his face as he scrolls through something on it. “So, a smaller party might be better?”

 

               “Christmas Eve?” Victor frowns and grabs his own phone, opening the calendar app. “Right… I always forget my birthday is on Christmas Day most places.”

 

               “How do you forget your birthday is on Christmas?” Chris is now looking at him as though he isn’t sure if he wants to be amused of exasperated.

 

               “Russian Christmas is in January.” Victor shrugs. “My parents have always celebrated Christmas then and my birthday on my birthday. I’ve never really had a cause to remember.”

 

               “Did you at least remember to get Yuri a Christmas present in case _he_ might not have forgotten the day the rest of the world celebrates the holiday?”

 

               “Of course, I did… _not_.” It feels as though someone has just poured ice water right down Victor’s spine. How could he have forgotten something like that? “Shit, Chris. I didn’t get him anything and Christmas Eve is two days away!”

 

               “I’m sure he’d not expecting much, if anything.” Victor knows Chris is trying to make him feel better. Trying to make up for the fact that Victor getting Yuri a present for Christmas had completely slipped his mind. Victor wasn’t in the mood to be cheered up, though. He was in the mood to frantically brainstorm and maybe panic a little bit. Just a little. “Victor, you’ve got that look on your face that says you are about to jump off into the deep end…”

 

               “What? No I don’t.”

 

               “You definitely do.” Chris leans forward and scrutinizes Victor’s face for a moment. “Okay, don’t move. I’m calling Phichit.”

 

               “No! Don’t do that.” Victor moves to lurch forward and grab at Chris’ phone, but the other man is faster than he is. “ _Chris! Don’t call him. I can figure this out on my own!_ ”

 

               “ _I’m sure you can, but we should still talk to Phichit._ ” Chris flips over so that he is now on the opposite end of the couch he is on in order to make sure Victor has that much further to go if he wants to make another play for taking the phone. “ _Remember that time back in China when Phichit saved your relationship by explaining White Day to you? I do. This is like that. Let’s just run any of your thoughts by someone who actually knows Japanese customs, yes?_ ”

 

               “ _I would like to think that Yuri and I have progressed far beyond the point of petty misunderstandings pushing us apart._ ” Victor sniffs indignantly and resolutely ignores the laughs he gets in response to his efforts. He pauses, watching Chris watch him. Eventually he sighs and caves. “ _Fine. Call him._ ”

 

               “You might not know it now, but I could be saving your life.” Victor shoots his friend a dirty look, but waits patiently as Chris presses a button on his phone and holds it up to his ear.

 

               He busies himself with his own phone as Chris murmurs to his boyfriend across the way. Victor checks his social media, responds to a text from his mother that had been sent the night before, double checks the time to make sure he’s safe as far as Yuri waking up and coming to look for him is concerned. He’s moved on to scrolling through his picture gallery in search of a photo he can post to his Instagram that isn’t up there already when he hears Chris tell Phichit goodbye.

 

               “Phichit say to meet him at the coffee shop around the corner in fifteen minutes. He said it would be safer there.” Chris sit up and Victor copies the motion from his couch. “He also told me to not let you of my sight, or, barring that, to take all your cash and cards if I do have to let you go somewhere I can’t follow.”

 

               “What have I ever done to cause you to have such little faith in me?” Victor gives his friend his best pouting expression, but it seems as though Chris is not moved. Damn it. That one always worked on Yuri. “Fine, fine. Can I borrow one of your coats, then? Yuri might sleep like the dead, but there’s always a chance that he might be ready to get up and I could disturb him.”

 

               “Only if you either come with me or surrender your wallet and phone before I go.”

 

               “My wallet I understand, but why my phone?” Victor asks as he hands over the requested items without any fuss. Chris has a point. It might not be a bad thing to get a little insight for once instead of leaping overboard without looking. Besides, there was always plenty of time for that later. After they were married and Yuri was stuck with him.

 

               “Because I know you have your credit card information stored on Amazon and your banking app has a scan to pay feature.” Chris accepts Victor’s things and shoves them in a pocket. “That, and if I have your phone then you can’t go too far even if you are holding out on me. You’d get lost in five seconds and this time there wouldn’t be any calling Yuri to lead you back.”

 

               “Damn it. You know me better than I know me.” Victor had to admit he hadn’t thought of those things immediately, but he was sure they would have come to mind the longer Chris took getting a pair of coats for them to wear. “Go on. Hurry back. Yuri won’t sleep forever.”

 

               Victor waits impatiently for Chris’ return. Without his phone he has nothing to distract himself from his own disappointment at not thinking ahead. To give him something to do, he holds out his right hand and looks down at his ring.

 

               They haven’t discussed wedding plans yet. At least nothing concrete. Victor wonders where they will want to have the ceremony. In Russia? In Japan? Somewhere else entirely? Do they want an indoor wedding? That would make sense and would appeal to Yuri’s need to make sure nothing go wrong. An outside wedding could mean unpredictable weather and any number of other inconveniences, but Victor can’t shake the picture of standing hand in hand with Yuri on a beach somewhere, the sound of the ocean the backdrop to their vows.

 

               When would be the best time to do it? Victor, of course, would traipse down to the courthouse right that second if he thought for a minute Yuri would go for it, but would Yuri have a preference? A spring wedding? Summer? Fall? Probably not winter. Yuri didn’t seem to be too fond being out and about in cold weather. Although maybe Victor shouldn’t discount it entirely. They had met in January after all. Was that a good month for weddings?

 

               No, probably not.

 

               Where is Chris? Victor doesn’t have anything to write with and his phone has been confiscated. He’s got some good brainstorming going on here and no way to record it.

 

               Though, should he wait and brainstorm with Yuri? The last thing Victor wanted was to think of something and get his heart set on it only to find that Yuri didn’t like the idea. Although Yuri did usually seem to go along with what Victor wanted for the most part… No! This was _their_ wedding. Not Victor’s wedding. He needed to talk to Yuri about it. Soon. After he figured out what to get him for Christmas.

 

               If he was supposed to get him anything for Christmas?

 

               Chris could have left him a book or something. He had to know that Victor alone with his own thoughts was just as dangerous as Victor alone with his wallet…

 

               Although he did have limited means to _act_ upon those thoughts, so maybe there was something to Chris’ decision after all.

 

               Before Victor decided to wander off on his own, or worse, go wake up Yuri to tell him about all of the ideas he’d just gotten, Chris shows up with coats in hand.

 

               He had managed to get from the middle of the common area to the front foyer, though.

 

               “Ah ha!” Chris comes up from behind him and slings an arm around his shoulder, shoving a coat into Victor’s arms. “You are already one foot out the door and off to do something undoubtedly rash and impulsive. Just think of how far you could have gotten if I had left you your phone.”

 

               “I don’t know if I want to thank you or hit you.” Victor grumbles, but he accepts the coat and shrugs it on with minimal complaining. “Can I have my phone back now?”

 

               “I think you have just proven exactly why you shouldn’t have your phone right now.” Chris raises an eyebrow and smirks and Victor sighed. His friend did have a point. “Come on. Phichit first, then you can have your things back, okay?”

 

               “Fine.”

 

~

 

               “You were about to walk out the door and into the cold with only a sweater on? No phone and no wallet either?” They had found the coffee shop Phichit had asked them to meet him at and had settled at a table in the very back, obscured from the eyeline of the front door by a good portion of wall. Anyone would have to either really look or already know where to find them in order to see where they were. Phichit was looking at Victor now with a mixture of amusement and maybe even concern. “How far did you think you were going to get? No, better question. Where did you think you were going to go?”

 

               “I’m not entirely sure.” Victor rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. Now that he was no longer alone, thinking about his earlier fugue state was making him feel a bit embarrassed. “I had some vague idea about taking a walk and clearing my head.”

 

               “You would have frozen to death.” Phichit stated and raised a hand as it looked like both Victor and Chris were opening their mouths to rebut his statement. “No. I don’t care if you are Russian. It’s snowing hard and well below freezing. You would have frozen to death and then _someone_ was going to have to tell Yuri about how your let your stupid ass turn into a human popsicle because you have this misplaced theory that Russians are immune to the cold. Knowing how big of a baby Chris can be, I’d be willing to bet that person would have been me, too.”

 

               “Okay. You have a valid point.” Victor had to admit that much, at least. “Alright, we don’t have a ton of time. Yuri enjoys sleeping in, but he’s not going to sleep forever and I’m probably going to have some things to do and limited time to do them in once we’re done with this conversation.”

 

               “It’s more like an intervention, but I get what you mean.” Chris leant back in his chair and crossed his legs.

 

               “Oh, another intervention? Chris, you didn’t say that’s what this was. You know how much I love interventions!” Phichit clapped his hands together and Victor had to admit that the smaller man did look overjoyed at this turn of events. “What are we intervening with this time?”

 

               “Should I get Yuri something for Christmas and, if so, what should it be?” Victor figured he might as well put everything out on the table in the interest of saving time. He was well beyond the point of being embarrassed now. “I may have forgotten that just because we celebrate Christmas in January back home, that it might not be the case everywhere else.”

 

               “There are times when I really worry that you would lose your own head if it wasn’t tightly attached to your body.” Phichit shakes his head and chuckles as he takes a sip of his latte. “But, to the matter at hand… Christmas in Japan is more like… I guess traditional Valentine’s Day everywhere else. Neither Yuri nor I have ever been in a relationship around this time of year since I’ve known him, but from what I recall Christmas Eve is popular for going on dates and exchanging presents and then Christmas Day is more or less normal… Well, they eat fried chicken for some reason? Although, Yuri doesn’t ever really follow that part of the tradition to the best of my knowledge.”

 

               “Romantic.” Victor sighs in relief. “I can do romantic.”

 

               “Over the top romantic or a normal person’s romantic?” Chris asks. He had been sliding Victor’s wallet and phone back across the table towards him, but he paused and pulled them back. “Please do know that if you try to lie to us, we will know.”

 

               “You wouldn’t believe me even if I was telling the truth.” Victor is quick to point out. “I do have some ideas that aren’t what others would categorize as insane. I’m going to need my phone to do some research, though.”

 

               For a moment, it looks like Chris isn’t going to hand it over. Victor is only saved by the fact that a text message comes through at that very moment.

 

               “Saved by Prince Charming again.”

 

               As Victor reaches out to retaken possession of his phone he sees that Chris is right. The text preview shows Yuri’s name and he quickly disengages the lock and reads the message to himself before looking up at where Phichit and Chris are waiting patiently.

 

               “He’s awake, and he wants to go to breakfast.” Victor pauses and send back a text with his current location. “We’re running out of time.”

 

               “What do you want to do?” Chris asks. “There is the Christmas Eve party. You can take him to that, of course.”

 

               “If he’s going to do a romantic date, I don’t think that’s the kind of party he’s going to want to take Yuri to.” Phichit points out. “This could be a good thing. You can focus on Yuri for Christmas Eve and then Yuri can focus on you for your birthday. Did we ever decide what we were doing about a party or not?”

 

               “We didn’t make any choices, though I wouldn’t mind something small to get everyone together. We will be going home in about five days after all. Who knows when we’d be able to get everyone together in one place again.” Victor is only half paying attention to what he’s saying, focusing more on Yuri’s response to his message. “Yuri wants to go ahead and meet me here. He said he’ll be here in thirty minutes.”

 

               “Then we’ll be gone in twenty-eight.” Phichit leans forward onto the table, his elbows resting on the surface and his hands supporting his chin. “Victor, you cannot give him something crazy the day before your birthday. You know that’s only going to send him into an anxiety spiral and make him second guess whatever he’s gotten you for a present.”

 

               “No, no. You are right. Small but intimate. I can do that.” Victor nodded firmly. “Wait a minute… Am I supposed to get everyone else presents, too?”

 

               “Oh, Victor…” Phichit reached out across the table and patted him on the hand. “You have a lot of last minute shopping to do, don’t you?”

 

               “The good news is that Yuri can help me with most of it.” Victor fiddled with his phone, his mind now far away from the discussion at hand. “How about this? I spend Christmas Eve with Yuri and we can celebrate like they would in Japan, we can exchange our Christmas and birthday gifts, and then Christmas Day we can all hang out together?”

 

               “That’s not a terrible plan.” Chris agrees. “You’ve definitely had worse.”

 

               “It shouldn’t be too hard to figure something out. I’ve already gotten him the one thing that really matters.” Victor was confident he was right on that score. Even weeks later, still glancing down and catching the hint of gold on his right hand was enough to make his heart shudder to a stop and the breath to catch in his throat. They were already going to have their forever. Anything else was just icing on the cake. “I might have to ask one or both of you to call him away later this afternoon, though. We’ll go shopping for presents for everyone else, but I’ll keep an eye out to see if there is anything that catches his attention. Once I have a better idea of what to get, you turn up or call him or something and then I can go back and get it.”

 

               “We can definitely do that.” Phichit is quick to agree to the plan and they spend the rest of their fifteen minutes before Phichit and Chris get up to leave chatting about the gifts Chris and Phichit have already bought and drawing out a game plan for where Victor can go to find ideas of his own.

 

               Victor got up as they left and moved to a more prominently placed table. The panic from before was receding now that he had a course of action. In fact, he wasn’t sure why he had panicked in the first place. He should be beyond the stage where he instantly convinced himself that he was going to give Yuri something wrong that would send him running.

 

               They weren’t going anywhere. Not without each other. The rings on their fingers more than proved that.

 

               Victor had nothing to worry about.

 

~

 

               When Yuri woke up that morning he was struck by the fact that the other side of the bed was empty.

 

               That, in and of itself, was not something new. While the majority of the time he would wake up with Victor at his side, it was impossible for that to happen every time. Yuri often slept in and Victor was an annoyingly cheerful morning person. For the most part Victor was at the very least already awake by the time Yuri came back into consciousness.

 

               What was different was that Victor wasn’t there at all. Even when he wasn’t still curled in bed with Yuri, he was typically puttering around the room, in the bathroom brushing his teeth or shaving or fixing his hair for the day. He was sitting at the desk on his laptop or phone catching up with any message or social media alerts that had come through during the night, or he was rifling through their closet for something to wear.

 

               He could count on one hand the number of times since they had started living together where Yuri had woken up and Victor hadn’t been there at all.

 

               Yuri bit back the instant urge to freak out or start second guessing everything. It was so much stronger this morning than it had been those other times. Yuri assumed probably due to how close to the end of the year it was and the time for them to go back home to their own lives. Still keeping his head resting against the pillow, he stretched his right hand out in front of him until the golden band on his ring finger was framed in a square of light coming in from the window.

 

               Victor might not be right _here_ , but that didn’t mean he was gone forever.

 

               Reaching out for his phone, Yuri tried to calm where his heart had begun to race even against his best efforts to hold it back. He was sure there was nothing to worry about. Victor often got bored and wandered off. Yuri grabbed his glasses off the bedside table made of boxes and sent a good morning text to his fiancé.

 

               That accomplished, Yuri disentangled himself from the blanket cocoon he was wrapped in and stretched as he got to his feet. The laminate floor was cold under his bare feet and he hopped quickly over the floor to where he’d laid out an outfit to wear today the night before. By the time he had washed his face and brushed his teeth, there was a message from Victor waiting for him.

 

               Apparently, Victor had thought Yuri needed his rest and had gone off looking to grab some breakfast to bring back to him. While Yuri appreciated the gesture, he had some errands to run that afternoon in preparation for Victor’s birthday and the Christmas Eve party he was sure his friends would end up dragging them to. Instead of waiting for his fiancé to bring the food to him, Yuri asked if it would be alright to just meet Victor there so they could eat together before going out for the day.

 

               When Victor replied in the affirmative, Yuri began to get ready to go out with more of a purpose.

 

               It is easy to find Victor at the coffee shop. He’s sitting smack dab in the middle of the room. As soon as he catches sight of Yuri coming in through the door he’s on his feet, eyes bright and smile pulled tight across his face. Yuri’s heart does its usual stutter step as he sees it. It’s been almost twelve months since he met the other man. Shouldn’t that no longer be happening?

 

               Not that Yuri ever wants it to stop.

 

               “Yuri!” Victor launches himself across the room without a second thought. Yuri manages to get two steps through the door before he instinctively braces himself for the crushing hug he knows is coming. He is rewarded for his preparation a split second later as Victor rushes right into his open arms and almost knocks them both off of their feet before nuzzling his nose in the collar of Yuri’s coat. “Oh, Yuri! You’re freezing!”

 

               “Of course, I am.” Yuri laughs as he squeezes Victor right back. “I wouldn’t be surprised if it snows again later.”

 

               They stand like that just a few meters in front the door until the tinkling of the bell overhead causes them to move so as not to block the entry of new patrons. Although Victor does release Yuri from his death grip, he does move away from his side and he grabs Yuri’s hand in compensation. Even through Yuri’s glove he can feel the other man’s warmth.

 

               “I haven’t ordered yet. I thought I would wait for you so that we could eat together.” Victor moves towards the counter and Yuri allows himself to be guided along, their fingers still tangled together at their sides. “Sleep well?”

 

               “Yes.” Yuri waits until they have ordered their meals and have accepted their drinks from the barista, a coffee for Victor and a green tea for Yuri, before continuing. “Missed you when I woke up, though.”

 

               “Aw… I’m sorry. I should have waited, but you looked so adorable and peaceful sleeping I couldn’t bear to wake you.” Victor does look sad and Yuri offers him a smile that he hopes is reassuring. They part in order to sit in chairs opposite each other at the table Victor had already claimed. “You’ve been working late again. You need your rest when you can get it.”

 

               “Thank you.” And Yuri does mean it. He was still getting used to having someone who would be there to take care of him. It was actually less awkward and more pleasant than he had expected it to be. As Yuri slips off his own coat and Victor shifts in his seat across the way, Yuri notices the coat hanging off the back of his chair. “Is that Chris’ coat?”

 

               “Ah?” Victor twists at the waist in order to look at the offending object hanging behind him. “Yes? Yes, I suppose it is. Huh. I guess he must have left it in our room or something and I grabbed it in the dark this morning.”

 

               “Sounds like you were in a hurry if you didn’t even notice.” Yuri watched Victor’s reaction carefully. His fiancé never had been good about hiding when he was planning something and Yuri was fairly confident in his ability to not only recognize the warning signs, but also to interpret them to get a better idea of where Victor might be coming from.

 

               “Hmm? Not really. Just trying to get dressed and watch you sleep at the same time.” Victor shrugs and Yuri smirks. “See? Even asleep you have the power to occupy my every thought.”

 

               “Victor, stop.” Yuri can feel his cheeks burn, but he knows they are both very aware of the fact that he does not want Victor to stop. “I am going to miss this, though. When we go back home.”

 

               “Miss meeting in coffee shops for breakfast?” Victor asks, and, that’s funny, Yuri is certain he looks genuinely confused. “I don’t see why we wouldn’t be able keep doing that.”

 

               “Well, the commute between Russia and Japan is going to be hell, but if you’re determined…” Victor face falls and Yuri is suddenly struck with the realization that Victor hadn’t been teasing or kidding. “Victor… You know that in five days we’re going home. Separately. As in, you are going to Russia and I’m going to Japan, don’t you?”

 

               “What? Why?” Victor now looks upset and Yuri feels a squirm of anxious energy in the pit of his stomach. He still can’t quite wrap his head around what was happening. How could Victor not know? But, then again, Victor was the type of person that printed his boarding passes two hours before needing to go to the airport. It was a very real possibility he didn’t even know that St. Petersburg was the final destination on his ticket. “That’s no good. I’ll call my parents. Have them change my ticket.”

 

               “You can’t do that.” Yuri reached out and grabbed Victor’s hand as he went to pick up his phone from off the table. “There’s too much you need to do in Russia.”

 

               “If you mean graduation, I’m fine with graduating in absentia.” Victor frowns, but doesn’t pull his hand out of Yuri’s grasp. “I haven’t even been on campus all year. I won’t be missing much.”

 

               “It’s not that.” Yuri shuffles nervously in his seat. “You have a contract. You have a responsibility.”

 

               “I have a contract with my father. I can speak with him. Work something out.” Yuri can tell Victor is panicking a bit now and he tries to push down the sympathetic panic brewing in his own head. He tries to keep his expression stern, and he knows he succeeds when Victor’s face falls. “Fine, I won’t go to Japan. Come to Russia with me.”

 

               “Vitya, you know I can’t.” Yuri places his other hand on top of where they are still joined together. Victor repeats the motion. “I’ve been putting off too much already. Mari needs my help. In person. I don’t like it any better than you do.”

 

               “But you saw it coming.” Victor mutters bitterly. “I was too busy with my head in the clouds to think about it.”

 

               “You’re an optimist. It’s one of the many things I love about you.” Yuri says, and he means it. He knows Victor didn’t forget something like this to be mean or hurtful. He simply hadn’t seen any other outcome to the year aside from them returning home together. Yuri can’t say that thought hadn’t crossed his mind as well, but it couldn’t work. “I don’t want to go without you, but we have responsibilities. We have people that are counting on us and depending on us to be there. We’ll work something out, but we aren’t going to be able to do it in five days.”

 

               “I should have been thinking about this sooner.” Yuri smiles weakly and squeezes both of his hands. “You were.”

 

               “Trust me, that is not always a good thing.” That draws a weak chuckle out of Victor. Yuri’s smile brightens. “We’re engaged. I didn’t say ‘yes’ to marrying you just to turn around and walk away forever. We’re going to sort out a way to make it work. I promise.”

 

               “Being an adult is the worst.” Victor laments as he frowns again, though Yuri has to admit it looks more like a pout than a true frown now. “How am I supposed to live without you even for a few days now that I know what I’ll be missing?”

 

               “If you figure that out, let me know. I don’t know how I’m going to live without you either. I woke up this morning and everything felt so _wrong_ as soon as I noticed you weren’t there.” Yuri wasn’t sure if it was wise to admit that right now with Victor already feeling down, but instead of causing him to spiral back into depression, it simply makes Victor lean forward, an intent look on his face that sent shivers down Yuri’s spine. “You know I’m going to find every opportunity I can to come visit you and you’ll do the same, right?”

 

               “Of course! Although, I have to warn you, once you turn up in Russia or I manage to make it to Japan, I think we’re going to find it quite impossible to get one of us to go back.” Yuri knows that is not an idle threat. “Okay, we have five more days. We have to make them count… But first… I may have forgotten that our friends could possibly expect presents from me for Christmas Eve…”

 

               “You did?” And just when Yuri thought Victor was done surprising him, there he went again. “How do you forget something like that?”

 

               “Christmas in Russia is in January!” Victor’s pout is back in full force and Yuri feel his mood lift even if it is only the tiniest bit. “Ask Yurio! I’ll bet he didn’t think about getting anyone presents either!”

 

               “I know for a fact he picked up gifts for everyone last week. I was with him when he did.” Yuri laughs as Victor’s eyes widen and he gasps.

 

               “That little traitor.” Victor mutters something in Russian under his breath that Yuri can’t quite catch, but he has enough of an imagination to guess at what it might be in general. “I wish I could say I can’t believe he left me hanging out to dry like that, but I’m pretty sure we both know it would be an empty platitude.”

 

               “After we eat, we can go shopping. I still haven’t found something for Yurio yet.” Yuri glances up as the barista appears at their table, a bright smile on her face as she waits for them to let go of each other and clear enough space for her to place their food down in front of them. They both thank her and Yuri turns back to Victor as soon as she leaves. “Then Otabeck wanted some help setting things up for the Christmas Eve party in a few days. He wants to make sure he gets his equipment set up before they start decorating so he can make sure he has all the space he needs.”

 

               “Perfect. Shopping and then helping a friend. It’s a date!”

 

~

 

               Victor had tried to keep his mood up for the rest of the day, but he kept catching himself drifting in and out of melancholy mood swings ever since his breakfast with Yuri.

 

               How could have been so shortsighted? Victor knew he had a tendency to get wrapped up in his own excitement from time to time, and his engagement to Yuri was definitely the most exciting thing that had ever happened to him, but to forget that in _five days_ they were going to be heading off back to their respective corners of the world?

 

               Now, as though making up for lost time, it was the _only_ thing he could think about.

 

               “ **You’ve been awfully subdued today.** ”

 

               Victor jumps and nearly drops the thick, black cables in his hands as he turns to find Otabeck looking at him with that same unreadable expression on his face.

 

               “ **Who me?** ” Victor tries to put on one of his fake smiles. It last roughly ten seconds before he can feel it slip away. Otabeck raises an eyebrow and wait. Victor lets out a puff of air with enough force to ruffle his bangs. “ **I’m sorry. I know I haven’t been the best company**.”

 

               His eyes trail across the room to where Yuri is laughing and joking with Phichit as they string lights around the windows. He doesn’t have to look to know that Otabeck follows his gaze and sees exactly what he is looking at.

 

               “ **I don’t blame you. It must be hard to have to watch him go. I’m sure it’s hard for him, too.** ” Otabeck reached out and took the cords Victor was holding. “ **You can see it in his eyes. When he thinks no one is looking. They follow you, the way yours follow him**.”

 

               “ **Shit.** ” Victor runs a hand through his hair and forces himself to turn his back on Yuri and focus more on what he’s supposed to be doing. “ **I am sorry. Am I really that transparent?** ”

 

               “ **Perhaps not, but I know what to look for.** ” Otabeck shrugs and begins fiddling with the sound board in front of him, attention more on the sequence of his flashing lights and less on Victor. “ **I know it doesn’t feel like it right now, but you should be happy. You did get the boy after all.** ”

 

               Something flashes through Victor’s brain. Something like recognition. Something like seeing himself in someone else, but not the version of himself right now. The version he was before. Longing glances and carefully maintained distances. Hesitations and stepping forward only to retreat again.

 

               Something he has seen Otabeck doing that he hadn’t paid attention to before. Hadn’t had the context to put two and two together before now.

 

               “ **And you didn’t, did you?** ”

 

               Victor isn’t sure why he just said that. He liked Otabeck well enough, and they were civil enough to each other when they spent time together, but that didn’t give him the right to ask the question. Didn’t give him the right to expect an answer either.

 

               He was about to backtrack and apologize again, maybe excuse himself from the conversation entirely and go pine on his own for a time, but Otabeck started speaking before he could even open his mouth.

 

               “ **The timing isn’t right.** ” Otabeck waves him off as Victor goes to open his mouth again, this time to protest. “ **Victor, sometimes the timing really just isn’t right. No amount of hard work or communication is going to fix that. You know he is about to give up everything when he returns to Russia. He’s going to lose his income, his family, his life, to chase his dreams. I can’t ask him to spit in the face of all of that for me.** ”

 

               “ **That doesn’t mean it has to be that way forever.** ” Victor is quick to point out.

 

               “ **I know.** ” And Otabeck looks like he does know. Looks like he’s already thought this out. Already know the answers to the questions that haven’t even been asked. “ **Right now he needs a friend. Later… Later we will see. I don’t expect him to give up dancing for me and he doesn’t expect me to give up music for him, but neither of those things will last forever. Like how the time you will spend apart from Yuri won’t last forever. Time is a relative thing, after all**.”

 

               “ **Yes, it is, isn’t it?** ”

 

               They finish setting up the DJ equipment in silence. Victor’s mind is spinning too fast for conversation and Otabeck never had been a talkative one to begin with.

 

               Victor definitely had a lot to think about now.

 

~

 

               Victor woke up on Christmas morning exactly the way he wanted to. With Yuri asleep in his arms.

 

               He took a long moment to lie there and watch Yuri sleep. Memorizing every detail from the way the light rested across his face and brought out the golden hues in his tan to the way his chest would rise and fall with each breath. The fan of dark lashes across his cheeks and the way his mouth was slightly parted, breath ghosting across the bare skin of Victor’s collar bones.

 

               The night before came back to him in stunning clarity. Walking through the Christmas market in front of the Place de Arts, Seeing Yuri’s sparking grin under the light as they moved from booth to booth. Coming back to the dorm to find the Christmas Eve party was still well underway and have Yuri be the one to take Victor by the hand and lead him out onto the dance floor.

 

               Dancing together until two in the morning, drunk on nothing more substantial than adrenaline and love. Sitting on couches and floors while they exchanged gifts with their friends and laughed and cried as they told stories from the past year.

 

               Crawling into bed at four am when they hadn’t been able to keep their eyes open any longer.

 

               It had been the perfect night. All Victor could have asked for and more.

 

               Yuri was stirring now. Victor could feel it. His breaths were shallower and Victor couldn’t hold back his satisfied grin as he felt Yuri press his lips softly against Victor’s sternum.

 

               “Good morning, love.” Victor murmured the words into Yuri’s soft hair and the other man dropped another kiss right on top of the previous one. “Merry Christmas.”

 

               “Happy birthday.”

 

               Yuri’s voice was low and rough, gravelly from sleep and accent wrapping the words tightly in the way it always did when Yuri was too tired to keep it in check. Warmth spread through Victor’s body, radiating out from all the places where they were pressed together and sweeping through his blood.

 

               “I don’t think I am ever going to move from this spot.” Yuri hummed his agreement into Victor’s chest at his words.

 

               “We have to get up eventually. If only to eat.” As though to prove his point, Yuri’s stomach let out a low growl at that moment. Yuri let out a soft sigh. “Oh, shut up. I didn’t mean right now.”

 

               “Adorable.” Victor began to pepper kisses into Yuri’s hair. “How are you so adorable all the time? That must be exhausting.”

 

               “For it to be exhausting would imply I was intending on being adorable. I assure you, I have never had any such intention.” Yuri pulled back and removed his hand from Victor’s waist to cover a yawn. “It just seems to happen whether I want it to or not.”

 

               “Whether you mean to be or not, you are most certainly the most adorable human being I have ever met in my entire life.” Victor chuckled and Yuri wiggled out of his grasp. Victor heaved himself up into a sitting position as well, rubbing sleep from his eyes and watching as Yuri grabbed his glasses and placed them on his face where they belonged. “Good morning.”

 

               “You’ve already said that.” Yuri doesn’t seem too upset with the repetitive greeting as he leans in and kisses Victor soundly, only pulling back as his phone chimes from somewhere under the pillow. “Ah, I guess that means it’s time to start moving if we want to be on time for brunch with our friends.”

 

               “Before you go, there’s something I want to give you. Can you hand me my bag? I think it might have fallen under the bed…” Victor watches as Yuri bends over the edge of the bed, his shirt raising up to give Victor a good look at the smooth skin of his back as he does so. After about fifteen seconds of shuffling around, he sits back up and hands over the requested bag. “Thank you.”

 

               “Vitya, why did you get me something? It’s not my birthday. It’s yours.” Yuri is now looking confused and Victor sends him a reassuring grin.

 

               “I know. I meant to give it you last night, for Christmas, but we fell asleep before I could.” Victor rummages around in his bag until his finds a blue box lodged down towards the bottom. “It’s something I really want you to have.”

 

               Yuri looks like he wants to protest again, but Victor cuts him off with a gentle finger pressed against his lips.

 

               “No. Open it first. Then if you still don’t want it, I’ll take it back. Fair trade?”

 

               “Fair trade.” Yuri echoes as he runs the tips of his fingers over the box. He gently pulls at the seams and Victor can hear his breath catch in his throat as he pulls out what’s inside. “A key?”

 

               “It belongs to my flat in Russia.” Victor’s voice is hushed and they lean into each other, forehead pressed together and eye down on the silver key sitting in the palm of Yuri’s hand. “I know you can’t come back with me now, but I want you to have it. I want you to know that you will always have a home in Russia… That someday I hope we have a home that is _ours_.”

 

               “Vitya…”

 

               Yuri is crying, and belatedly, Victor realizes he is crying, too.

 

               They hold each other for a long time. They seem to have finally run out of words in all the languages they share between them. Instead, the hold each other, rocking back and forth and allowing their tears to flow freely.

 

               Victor knows it’s not going to be forever. He knows that every time he looks down at his right hand he will be reminded of the beautiful Japanese man he is in love with and he will picture the future they will have together.

 

               Even so far apart, Yuri will always be by his side, tucked away in his heart where he belongs until they can come back together again.

 

~

 

               The next day they are at yet another airport. Everyone is hugging. Goodbyes are being shouted as students peel off to make their flights. Tears are shed and promises made. Plans for meeting up down the road and friendships that will last a lifetime even with the distance that will come between them.

 

               Victor holds Yuri close, or Yuri holds him close. At some point the boundaries where one ends and the other begins have become blurred, as though they are one person now. His heart aches, but there aren’t any tears today. He’s already let them all go.

 

               Victor had been twenty-three when he had departed from Russia twelve months ago. Now he was twenty-four and he was returning home the same way he had left it.

 

               Alone.


	37. Chapter 37

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since this chapter takes place mostly in Russia, I'm doing away for the formatting when speaking in different languages so as to stop roughly half of this chapter from having bolded text. Assume when Victor is speaking with his parents, they are speaking Russian and with everyone else, he would be speaking English.
> 
> Well, we're here. Almost the end of the road. Thanks so much for sticking with me through this crazy journey! More notes later on!

               January – Russia

 

               Victor’s mother and father met him at the airport. They were huddled into thick coats, scarves, hats and gloves to combat the below freezing temperatures. That didn’t stop any of them from exchanging awkward hugs and murmured greetings before setting about getting Victor’s suitcases and other bags settled in the boot of the car and the three of them safely tucked away inside where the heater could help chase away some of the chill.

 

               “It is good to have you back, Vitya.” Irina had slipped into the backseat with them, and, as soon as they had unwound their scarves and removed hats and gloves, she had pulled him into a real hug. “We’ve missed you.”

 

               “I’ve missed you, too.” Victor’s response came easy. He had missed them. Far more than he had thought he would twelve months ago. It was like, through the act of being gone, they had all been brought closer together in a way that had been impossible when they had just been a forty-five minute bus ride apart. “Both of you.”

 

               “Thank you for letting me go.” It suddenly struck him that he had never truly thanked either of his parents for agreeing to allow him to leave. He had been so used to their constant financial support in his life that he hadn’t even had second thoughts about them allowing the excursion when he’d applied. Now, however, he knew how hard it must have been for them to see him go. How hard it was to let a loved one walk away even when you knew it might be the best thing for them. “It was the best year of my life.”

 

               “Of course, it was.” Irina’s smile was bright and warm and she reached out with a pale hand to take Victor’s in her own. She turned it over her grasp as both of their eyes fell to the golden ring there. “It led you to the love of your life, after all.”

 

               “I miss him.” Before he could stop himself, the words tumbled out of his mouth unchecked. “That’s so stupid, isn’t it? We’ve only been apart for about sixteen hours, but I still miss him so much.”

 

               “Oh, baby…”

 

               “I’m sure he misses you, too.” Victor started at bit at the deeper sound of Maxim’s voice coming from the front seat. “You’ve just spent the last twelve months constantly close to each other. It’s normal to miss someone after something like that. It won’t be forever, son.”

 

               “Let’s get you home. We dropped off Makkachin this morning when we swung around your flat to make sure they had turned the water and electric back on.” Irina squeezed Victor’s hand. “It might help to see your dog and take a hot shower and maybe a short nap.”

 

               Victor hit the button on the side of his phone in order to see the time. He frowned. “That might not be so bad. Yuri’s flight took off a few hours after mine and his trip is longer than mine was. He might have landed and be back in the land of internet by the time I wake up.”

 

               “I’m sure he will be.” Irina practically cooed. “I remember the first time your father had to go on a long business trip without me. We’d been married for three months at the time and even though I knew he’d be back at the end of the week, I still felt awful the whole time he was away. We didn’t even have video streaming either. Just old fashion phone call that cost a fortune. Worth every penny, of course.”

 

               “You’re right…” Victor took a deep breath, tucked his phone away in his pocket, and tried to focus on his mother who was right in front of him and solid and real and not currently on a plane over the ocean somewhere. “This is temporary.”

 

               “It is.” His mother was quick to agree. “And then soon you’ll be married and we’ll have a son-in-law to dote on!”

 

               He perked up at that and they spent the rest of the short ride from the airport to his flat cheerfully discussing different plans for the wedding. Victor knew it was a fairly pointless exercise since Yuri wasn’t there to have his input into the matter, but it helped. Focusing on their future instead of their bleak present where Victor wasn’t even sure when he would see the other man again.

 

               Being able to imagine the time when they would be together helped to put off some of the despair he was feeling at not being together right then and there.

 

               He was feeling better by the time they pulled up at his flat and began pulling bags and suitcases out of the car. His sixteen hour of travel were catching up to him and he drug his feet as they made their way to the correct unit, almost slipping and falling as his shoes hit a patch of ice hidden in a dark patch of sidewalk.

 

               That same falling feeling continued the moment he stepped over the threshold.

 

               He didn’t notice it at first. As soon as he’d stepped through the door, Makkachin had bolted across the place and almost knocked him off his feet. Victor immediately dropped to his knees held his wriggling dog tight to his chest, muttering endearments in Russian into the soft curls at the top of his head.

 

               It was after he’d let Makkachin go and meandered into the dark room in front of him that it caught him, hitting him right in the gut and making him feel as though the bottom of his stomach had dropped out.

 

               The lights were out, and Victor blinked as his father hit the switch on his way through the front door. Everything was just how he’d left it. There was a grey blanket folded neatly on one of the cushions of the couch and Makkachin’s dog bed was still in the corner of the room, slightly off kilter now as that must have been where the poodle had been resting before the excitement of their arrival.

 

               Victor stumbled into his bedroom, ignoring his mother and father talking to each other in the background. This room was the same as he’d left it, too. The pale blue comforter pulled up to the edges of the pillows and a peek of the grey sheets underneath riding up between the fluffy white mounds. He’d left the door to his bathroom open and through the door he could see his shower and the porcelain tub beside it. There were still a few bottles scattered across the marble countertop, products he had left behind in April.

 

               He took a step back, leaving the messenger bag and the rolling suitcase in the doorway as he stepped back out and toward the kitchen. There was something so _wrong_ about his flat. Something he was having trouble putting his finger on. It was like he was walking around in a daze, everything achingly familiar and yet somehow also not at the same time.

 

               When he steps into the kitchen it hits him like a bolt of lightning.

 

               There are two mugs sitting by the coffee maker. They are both cream colored and one has a chip on the lip from where it had clinked against the dishwasher one too many times. As Victor stares at them, he knows exactly what is wrong. Exactly what’s missing.

 

               “Mama? Papa? Do you think it would be okay if I stayed with the two of you for a while?”

 

~

 

               Victor’s hand trembled as he set up his laptop later that evening. Yuri had sent him a text to let him know his plane had landed and they had set up a time to reconnect through Skype as soon as possible.

 

               Nerves were causing his stomach to flip over and over. Victor could stop himself from fidgeting in his hair. Couldn’t stop his fingers from hovering over the keyboard, eyes locked on the grey icon next to a picture of Yuri taken from the top of the London Eye. He was vaguely aware of Makkachin curled up under the desk on top of his feet.

 

               The second Yuri’s icon turned green, he pounced.

 

               “Yuri!”

 

               Yuri’s tired face filled his screen. The Japanese man had bags under his eyes and was blinking rapidly, squinting as though he was having a hard time seeing even with his glasses. Se he heard Victor’s greeting a bright smile spread across his face and Victor could see him visibly perk up.

 

               “Vitya!” The picture shudder and shook for a moment as Yuri reached out and adjusted the angle of the screen before solidifying back into a steady stream. “I was glad to hear you made it safe.”

 

               “Same.” Victor can feel his heart beating in time underneath his ribs. His fingertips itch with the desire to reach out and touch Yuri, but he knows he can’t. The cool screen of the laptop will never compare with the warm skin of his fiancé and he’s only going to disappoint himself if he tries. “I miss you.”

 

               “I miss you, too.”

 

               Victor had half been expecting Yuri to brush him off. For him to take the more logical track as he so often did and tell Victor they’d barely been apart for more than a day, but he didn’t. He just looked out through that screen, with his eye reflecting the same sadness that had settled over Victor like a thick fog.

 

               They sat in silence for a moment, each one taking in the details of the other.

 

               “Where are you?” Yuri breaks the silence first and Victor glances back into the room behind him before turning back to the screen. “I’m at my parents. Makkachin was here and I wanted to spend some time with them before I went back to my flat.”

 

               He prayed Yuri wouldn’t see through the lie. He wasn’t sure he would be able to hold it together if he had to admit to Yuri out loud that he hadn’t been able to bear being alone in his own home. How Yuri’s presence in April had probably ruined the place for him for the rest of his life.

 

               How he didn’t think he would be able to be back there until Yuri was there with him where he belonged.

 

               “Oh. That makes sense.” Yuri didn’t press the issue. “Are your parents there?”

 

               “They’re asleep still. It’s like two am here.”

 

               “Oh, no! Vitya, if it’s that early you didn’t have to wake up to talk to me!” Yuri looked upset now. “You should go back to bed.”

 

               “Jetlag. I took a nap earlier. I don’t think I would be able to sleep right now if my life depended on it.” Victor offered up as an explanation. It was half of the truth. Victor was jetlagged and he was tired, probably enough that he could catch a few more hours of sleep before hi disrupted internal clock would have pulled him back in to wakefulness, but that wasn’t the only reason he had been tossing and turning for the past few hours. “Plus, I wanted to see your face. Hear your voice. Make sure you really did make it in alright…”

 

               Victor noticed something in the background, a queen sized bed that he didn’t recognize. “Where are you?”

 

               “One of our hotels in Tokyo.” Yuri leant forward and rested his chin in the palm of his right hand. Victor couldn’t help but notice the way the blue glow from the computer screen caused his ring to shine directly into the camera. “Phichit and I don’t have a dorm room any longer since everyone has cleared out for the New Year’s holidays, but we aren’t quite ready to go back to Hasetsu yet. Mari should be coming up tomorrow and we have some meetings here, then we’ll spend New Year’s with my parents and then we’ll go straight to Sapporo to finish up with the hotel. The renovations were finished a few weeks ago and Mari wants us to be ready to open before tourist season begins. Work out the kinks while it’s slow.”

 

               “Sounds like you’re going to be busy.” Victor tried to keep the note of disappointment out of his voice. From the way Yuri was looking at him, he would have to say he had failed.

 

               “No more so than usual.” Yuri points out. “I’ll text you my schedule as soon as I have it. We can fit in as many times to talk as we can.”

 

               “What? You don’t want to carry your tablet around with you with a constantly connected Skype call?” Victor’s joke landed well and they both laughed.

 

               “That sounds highly impractical.” Victor could tell Yuri was trying to be sarcastic, but it was hard to believe when he was still giggling. “I wish I could, Vitya. I love you.”

 

               “I love you.” Victor felt a sense of calm wash over him that had been missing ever since they had parted ways at a Canadian airport over twenty-four hours ago.

 

               They might not be physically side by side right then, but that didn’t mean they had to go through this alone.

 

               All Victor had to do was keep telling himself that their separation wasn’t permanent. It wasn’t going to last forever. Sooner than he knew they would be back together again.

 

               If he kept telling himself that, he knew he would be able to make it.

 

~

 

               At first, they had scheduled a time to speak every single day. With the six hour time difference it had been difficult, but nowhere near impossible. The only time they had missed an appointment was on New Year’s Day when Yuri had been busy with his family, but they had made up for it with an extra long session the very next day.

 

               Then they had missed the day of Russian Christmas. That one had been Victor’s fault. His family were not huge churchgoers, but they always did make an exception for that day and they had run into some friends there and had been invited to a party. By the time they had gotten home it was already four in the morning in Japan and Victor knew Yuri had an important meeting the next day.

 

               They hadn’t really made up for that missed appointment. Now that the holidays were over, Victor was knee deep in his own work. He hadn’t even realized how time consuming coming up with marketing strategies for real world companies could actually be, and that was just with the two companies right there in St. Petersburg his father had put him in charge of just to warm up. Victor cringed whenever he thought about just how much worse it was going to be when he started taking on international clients.

 

               As one week had turned into two and then into three, they found it was much harder to sync up their schedules than they thought it would be.

 

               It had been three days since they had last spoken face to face. Of course, they were constantly texting each other unless they were in meeting or unconscious, but it wasn’t the same. A few weeks ago when Victor heard a funny joke or saw something interesting in a shop window as he walked past, all he had to do was turn his head and Yuri would have been there with a laugh or his own witty comment. Now, there was an empty space where his fiancé was supposed to be and trying to describe the situation or the weird hat with the multi-colored cotton balls secondhand was just a pale facsimile of before.

 

               Victor drummed his fingers again the top of his desk as he stared at where Yuri’s Skype icon was still stubbornly grey and inactive. They were supposed to have logged on ten minutes ago. He double checked his phone, but there were no messages from Yuri or anyone else. Not even a quick note to tell him Yuri would be late or that he wasn’t coming at all.

 

               He leant over and grabbed the plush poodle stuffed animal from his bed, part of Yuri’s birthday gift to him before they had parted ways, and he buried his face in the synthetic fur. If he tried hard enough, he could almost convince himself the toy still smelled like Yuri’s cologne.

 

               Makkachin lifted his head up from where he was curled on the bed and let out a low whine.

 

               “I know, buddy. I’m worried, too.” Victor unburied his face and sighed as the icon remained grey. He was worried. Yuri had been looking wane lately. More so than usual, the bags under his eyes darker, the slur in his words more pronounced as Victor’s free time usually came in the middle of his day, which was the end of his fiancé’s.

 

               Before he could chase those thoughts any further, there was the familiar bubble tone indicated an incoming video call.

 

               “Vitya! I’m so sorry I’m late. Mari and I were working on some new contracts and we just lost track of time.” The words tumbled out of Yuri’s mouth in a rush. “And I had forgotten to take my phone off of silent from our meeting earlier today so I didn’t hear when the alarm went off. I know I should have texted you or…”

 

               “Yuri!” Victor cut Yuri off before he could gather a full head of steam. “Yuri, it’s okay. I don’t have anything planned for another hour yet. We have plenty of time.”

 

               “Oh… Okay.” Yuri took a deep breath before pinching the bridge of his nose, pushing up his glasses as he did so. “I am sorry, though. I’ve been a mess this week. Can’t seem to focus on anything for more than a few minutes.”

 

               “I know exactly how you feel. Mama must have asked me the same question six times last night before I heard it.” Victor offered up a self-depreciating grin. “It would seem that neither of us are operating at peak efficiency these days.”

 

               “No, we aren’t.” Yuri released the bridge of his nose and allowed his glasses to fall back down into their proper place. “I didn’t think this was going to be so _hard_. People do this all the time. Long distance relationships. Not that they make it look easy, but… I still didn’t think it would feel like this.”

 

               “Like you are missing half of yourself?” Victor asks. Yuri nods. “I don’t know how other people do this, either. If I don’t get to touch you soon I think I’m going to go insane.”

 

               “Usually I would say you were being dramatic.” For a moment it looks like Yuri still might say it, but, instead, he lets out a defeated huff of air and only offers up a weak smile. “You’re still staying with your parents? Is Yurio still in your flat?”

 

               “No. He moved in with Lilia two days ago… I just…” Victor scrabbled with all his premade excuses. None of them felt right. None of them felt like he would be able to deliver them in a convincing manner. “I can’t go back there right now. It’s… It’s too empty. I’m barely holding it together as it is. I would be on the next flight to Sapporo if I had to stay there even for a minute.”

 

               “We make a depressing pair, don’t we?” There was something in the set of Yuri’s shoulders that tweaked at Victor senses. Something about the way he was holding himself that felt so familiar. Too familiar. In a way that made his blood run cold.

 

               “Yuri… Is everything alright over there?” Victor couldn’t stop to think about his question and if it should or shouldn’t be asked. Right then all he needed was the answer. He needed to know. “Please, you would tell me if something was wrong, right? You promised.”

 

               “Everything is fine now.” Yuri looks like he wants to leave it at that, but he seems to think better of it when he sees how concerned Victor knows he must look. “I had a rough patch a few days ago. It was like fifteen minutes tops before Mari and Phichit pulled me out of it. I’m just… Tired. You know how I feel off balance for like a week afterwards. I’ll probably be completely over it after the weekend.”

 

               “I’m sorry.” Victor isn’t sure if that is the right thing to say or not, but he says it without thinking because that is how he feels. Objectively he knows that these things are going to happen. That it probably would have still happened even if Victor had been there. That didn’t mean he wasn’t yearning to be there right then.

 

               To be able to take Yuri in his arms and remind him that he was loved and that Victor was never going to let go.

 

               “There’s nothing to be sorry about. It wasn’t your fault.” Yuri’s voice was flat, in that way it had been back in London all those months ago, and Victor felt dizzy. He opened his mouth, to say what he wasn’t quite sure, but Yuri beat him to the punch by smiling and speaking again. “It’s a whole host of things catching me all at once, Vitya. I’m fine now, or, at least, I will be. And I promise I was going to tell you tonight… You just… Beat me to the punch.”

 

               “I know you were.” And Victor did know. Yuri might have been holding off on saying anything from the beginning, maybe trying to gather his courage, but Victor wasn’t worried Yuri would try to hide his weakness any longer. Even with seven thousand kilometers between them Victor knew Yuri would never go back to that. “I trust you. I only wish I could be there for my own peace of mind, if not for yours.”

 

               “Thank you.” Yuri looked relieved, and a little more like normal. As though simply getting the words off his chest had helped. “Speaking of Yurio, how is he? Every time I text him, he’s too busy to send more than a word or two.”

 

               “He’s doing better than he was.” Victor welcomed the change of conversational topic. It was hard enough to stop from driving down to the airport on a whim. Continuing to talk about Yuri’s anxiety was going to push him there in a heartbeat. “He still hasn’t heard anything from his parents since their big fight they day after we got back, but I think he expected it. His Grandfather was able to reach out a few days ago. That’s part of what convinced him to finally stop sulking and accept Lilia’s offer of help.”

 

               “You didn’t hear this from me, but I’ve heard that Otabeck might be looking to transfer to a university in Moscow starting this summer. Yurio doesn’t want to talk about it, but I did see some printouts of different flats and townhouses for rent close to the Bolshoi.” They both smiled and Victor felt his mood lift. “He’s still hoping to get on the touring company. Chris and I have a theory that it’s because he wants to put as much distance between himself and Russia as humanly possible, but maybe this development means something different might be in store for our favorite, angry kitten.”

 

               “We’ll just have to wait and see.” Yuri pointed out as he laughed. As though trying to replicate the sound of human happiness coming through the speakers, Makkachin barked in response. “Oh! Is that Makka? Can I see him?”

 

               “How could I refuse any request from you, my love?” Victor quickly turned the laptop so the camera would be facing the bed and where Makkachin was now sitting on his haunches, tail thumping against the bedspread happily. “I think he misses you more than even I do sometimes.”

 

               “Impossible.” Yuri waved and cooed at the dog in Russian. His accent was actually getting better these days and Victor’s heart swelled with pride and joy. If Yuri was still practicing the language then he was still planning on needing it in the future. “He spent bits and pieces of a month with me back in April. I doubt he even knows I’m someone he’s supposed to miss.”

 

               “You don’t know Makkachin very well at all. He’s just like me. Once he sets his heart on a person, he never forgets them.” Victor couldn’t help but wink, smirking as Yuri’s blush was visible even with the dim lighting of the room he was in. Another hotel room if Victor were to hazard a guess. It was often hard to place exactly where in Japan Yuri was unless the man specifically said these days. “He also has excellent taste.”

 

               “I don’t know about that… He did choose you to be his owner.”

 

               “Yuri!” Victor spun the computer back around so that he was the center of focus once more. He clutched his hands to his chests. “You must be feeling better to hurt my fragile heart in such a way!”

 

               Yuri’s laughter then brought heat back to every part of Victor’s body. It was deep and loud and it touched Victor to his very soul.

 

               “Well, what does that say about me?” Yuri asked, eyes twinkling. “I chose you, too.”

 

               “And I thank fate every single day that you did, darling.” They both looked like the giant saps they were. Victor didn’t even have to look at the box in the corner of the screen that showed his own face to know that he was sporting a goofy grin to match Yuri’s own. “I’ll talk to my father again. I think I’ve been good enough to earn some time off. Besides, Mama is itching to start going over wedding plans. If your schedule allows, maybe I could come visit for a week. Maybe even bring Mama with me. I know she would love to meet your family and I’ve told her all about the hot springs. She can’t wait to get a chance to experience them firsthand.”

 

               “I can check with Mari, but we’re pretty full with the opening for the Sapporo location.” Yuri’s face fell and Victor’s mood fell with it. “I want to see you in person so badly, Vitya. I really do, but I want to have more than a week to be with you. I don’t think I’ll be able to let you go again after such a short time.”

 

               “I don’t think I’m going to want to let you go again ever.” This time Victor did reach out to the touch the screen and on the other end Yuri mirrored his motion. He had been right before, it wasn’t the same. All it did was tug on the pit of loneliness that had settled in the pit of Victor’s stomach, but he needed to try. Needed to reach out for his heart even though his head knew he wouldn’t be able to make that connection. “I’d feel better if I knew this interminable waiting had an end date, though.”

 

               “Me, too.” Yuri looked tired again. All the energy that had come moment before draining out of him again and leaving him looking pale and wan once more. “It shouldn’t be too much longer. I don’t think I could wait more than another month.”

 

               “I don’t think I can wait more than another minute.” The plush poodle was still in his lap and he picked it up and held it tight under his chin again. “Cuddling with this and Makka is no substitute for the real thing.”

 

               “Don’t tell Makka that. You’ll hurt his feelings.”

 

               They continued to tease each other back and forth from there, but their conversation was cut far too short when Yuri ended up yawning more often than not and Victor demanded he go to bed in an effort to not work himself into a coma.

 

               Victor envied his fiancé for being able to go right to bed upon the conclusion of their call. All he had to look forward to was yet another excruciating afternoon of dragging his bruised heart around like a lead weight.

 

               He didn’t know how much more of this he could take.

 

~

 

               Yuri screwed his eyes tight and shut his laptop with a click that felt as though it echoed through his very bones. Victor had made him promise to go straight to bed, but he had known even as the words had left his mouth that it was a promised he couldn’t and wouldn’t keep.

 

               There was still some time before his next appointment, however, and Yuri slide his glasses off his face and pillowed his head in his arms.

 

               Every muscle and joint in his body ached. He felt a twinge at the base of his skull that no amount of pain medication was ever able to touch. His eyes burned and his throat felt rubbed raw. If he tried hard enough, Yuri swore even the ends of his hair were sore, though he couldn’t for the life of him figure out how or why.

 

               It was more than just Victor’s absence, though that was taking its toll on him in like a gaping wound in the middle of his chest. It was the heavy weight of expectations hanging around his neck like a collar that chafed every time he took too deep a breath.

 

               It was trying to run head first in one direction while his heart was insistently trying to tug him in another.

 

               Yuri cracked his eyes open and stared at the blurry shapes that made up the furniture of the office he had borrowed as soon as they had arrived in Sapporo a few days prior. It felt bad to lie to Victor, even though that particular lie had been one of omission. Anytime Victor wanted to assume he was tucked away in a hotel room about to get ready for bed, Yuri never failed to correct him. Never failed to back away from the truth of the matter.

 

               He knew if Victor understood the true scope of how hard he was pushing himself, the end of the world itself wouldn’t have been enough to stop the other man from flying to his side.

 

               Yuri could hear voices on the other side of the door. He quieted his own breathing and struggled to focus. It sounded a lot like Phichit and Mari.

 

               “Is he still in there?” Yuri’s sister’s voice filtered in through the thin material of the door.

 

               “Yes. He said he was going to be talking to Victor for an hour at least.” There was an odd rustling sound that Yuri placed as Phichit shuffling his feet against the carpet outside. “I’m kind of hoping Victor convinces him to take a vacation.”

 

               “If anyone could, it would be him.” Mari sounded just as tired as Yuri felt and he stared blankly ahead as their words washed over him, almost lulling him into a doze as he parsed out the important information. “I know my brother, though. He won’t go anywhere. Not until the work is done. Not until he knows it’s perfect.”

 

               “I wish you weren’t right.” Phichit was still shuffling. Maybe pacing? Yuri couldn’t tell based off audio clues alone. “How much longer do you think it’s going to take. I though Yuri had someone high up on the inside that he was working with. Shouldn’t that mean this should be progressing at a faster pace?”

 

               “Some things can’t be rushed. Not if they are to be done right.” Either the door was thinner than he thought, or Yuri was superimposing his own heavy sigh onto his sister. “I’ll talk to him. Later. In the morning. After the meeting make sure he goes straight back to the hotel and right into bed. I don’t care if you have to sit on him to do it.”

 

               “You can count on me.”

 

               This time Yuri was certain the sigh he heard was his own. Phichit always took his job seriously, even if it entailed sitting on his best friend until he passed out from his own exhaustion.

 

               To be fair, he had brought it upon himself. He’d been ready to hit the ground running as soon as he’d touched down in Japan, pushing and pushing to try and get to a point where he could be reunited with Victor again. He hadn’t slowed down since and it was catching up to him. The panic attack of a few days before had been the tip of the iceberg.

 

               God, Victor would kill him if he knew even the half of it.

 

               “I’m worried about him. He’s going to make himself ill.” Mari was speaking again and Yuri pulled himself out of his thoughts to pay attention. “I’ve tried talking to him. It’s like bashing my head against a particularly stubborn wall.”

 

               “Well, you’ve definitely had more practice at it than I have.” The rustling noises stop. Either Phichit is done with his pacing or he never was pacing in the first place. Either way, it’s easier to hear them now without the white noise in the background. “It’s been a little over an hour now. Do you think they’re done?”

 

               That sounded like Yuri’s cue so he bullied his body into motion, grabbing his glasses and popping them back on his face, blinking as the dim room snapped back into a clear picture instead of fuzzy shapes.

 

               He knew they were worried about him. All of them. It hurt somewhere in the periphery of his emotions where everything was more or less numb by now. Pushing down his guilt, Yuri took a deep breath and squared his shoulders.

 

               He was close. So unbelievably close.

 

               It wouldn’t be long now. A few more weeks, maybe a month and everything would be in place.

 

               He would finally be able to get his happy ending.

 

~

 

               “You haven’t heard from him for two days now? Nothing? Not even a text? A butt dial? Something?”

 

               Victor shook his head, biting his lip as he looked at Chris’ familiar face through his screen.

 

               “He said he was going to go off the grid for a few days, but I didn’t think he meant it literally.” Victor bit back a frustrated groan. “I just thought he meant he wouldn’t be on Skype. I’m really worried about him. You should have seen him the last time we talked. He looked like he was about to fall out of his chair.”

 

               “Victor, I’m sure he’s fine. Mari or Phichit would have called you if there was really anything to worry about. Trust him.” Chris had a point, but Victor couldn’t quash the burn of worry that was racing through his veins. Something wasn’t right. He knew it. This was not like Yuri at all. Yuri was always aware and thoughtful. He had to know Victor’s mind would jump to the worst case scenario. “You’ve got that look on your face like you are about to do something stupid again.”

 

               “So what if I do?” Victor groused. He knew he was being irritable and poor company, but, for once, he didn’t care. His fiancé had dropped off the face of the earth and no one but him seemed concerned about it at all. How else was he supposed to behave? “It’s been a month since we left Canada. I can’t wait any longer. I have to go to Japan.”

 

               “I thought you were supposed to be helping your father bring in a new client tomorrow.” This time Victor wasn’t able to stifle his pained groan and Chris shook his head with a sad smile.

 

               “Then I’ll talk to Papa. He doesn’t need me. Everything we’ve done so far are things he could have done without me. Contract or no, I need to see Yuri now.” Victor’s mind was made. Even if no one else wanted to believe it, he knew something was wrong with Yuri. He _needed_ to be by his fiancé’s side. For his own sanity more than anything else. If he had to wake up to one more morning alone in bed with nothing but Makkachin to keep him company like none of last year had ever happened, he was going to lose his mind. “I might be physically capable of living without him, but I don’t _want_ to. Once I have him back with me we can figure something else out.”

 

               “I suppose it can’t hurt to talk to your father about it. He might let you go…”

 

               “He doesn’t have to _let_ me do anything. I’m an adult. If I want to make a foolish mistake in the name of love, then I have every right to do it.” Victor noticed his friend was very obviously trying to hold back from breaking out into laughter. “I’m being dramatic again, aren’t I?”

 

               “Yes, you are, but that is nothing new where Yuri is concerned.” Chris paused and Victor could hear a garbled male voice from somewhere in the background. “Ah, I have to go, my friend. Sorry I couldn’t stay for longer, but my own adult duties call. Talk to your father. I’m sure he would be amenable to your request. A month was longer than I thought you were going to last in any case.”

 

               “Nice to know my best friend has such faith in me.” Victor grumbled, but his goodbyes were heartfelt and Chris promised to call again before the end of the weekend so they could discuss what had come of Victor’s chat with his father.

 

               Determined now, Victor made his way out of his room and down the long hall towards the kitchen where, this close to dinner, he was sure his parents would be.

 

               He was about to step out of the hall and into the room, when he heard his name and he paused.

 

               “Vitya isn’t acting like himself. You can’t say you haven’t noticed Maxsimka.” His mother had her voice pitched low, but it was no less fierce or forceful for its low volume. “You have to do something. I you won’t talk to him then I will…”

 

               “Irinka… This won’t be for much longer. You know that.” If he didn’t know his father as well as he did, Victor would have said the man sounded unconcerned. There was something in the undercurrent of his words that belied his steady words, however. “Don’t look at me like that. It wasn’t _that_ long ago I was a young man in love. I can see where he is coming from.”

 

               “I wasn’t saying that.” Irina paused and Victor leant forward a bit to make sure he didn’t miss her next words. “You know how sensitive Vitya can be. Head in the clouds. This must be torture for him.”

 

               “Despite that, he is doing well. I couldn’t be prouder of his work.” In the hall, Victor put his hand over his mouth in order to prevent the involuntary gasp at his father’s words from being heard. “I will talk to him tonight.”

 

               That was as good a cue as any. Victor backed down the hall a ways and this time when he approached, he drug his feet and made more noise than necessary. By the time he entered the kitchen, his mother was at the sink with her back to the entryway and Maxim was perched on one of the tall chairs at the raised island in the middle of the room.

 

               Irina turned and smiled brightly as him, arms submerged to her elbows in suds. “Vitya! Did you have a nice chat with Christophe?”

 

               “Yes. He sends his love to the both of you.” Victor moved gracefully across the floor and took up his own stool, angling his seat so that he was facing his father. “Papa, there is something I need to speak to you about.”

 

               “Would it have something to do with possibly wanting to book a plane ticket to Japan?” Maxim arched an eyebrow and looked at his son in a way that made Victor feel utterly transparent. “You know that you have an important meeting tomorrow, Vitya. It is not a good time to go running for the airport.”

 

               “You can handle the meeting just fine without me.” Victor had expected to have to put up a fight. Having his father resist him was more than expected. “I can work from Japan until we sort out permanent living arrangements. Papa… I can’t live without him anymore. I won’t.”

 

               “You have always been so much like your mother.” Maxim grinned, sharing a soft look with his wife before sure turned back to her work, humming under her breath as she worked. “If you are so determined to do this, I will not stop you. I would, however, like to make a deal with you.”

 

               “A deal?” Victor asked. “What kind of a deal?”

 

               “I want you to keep your meeting tomorrow. If you can convince the client to buy our property and sign a contract with us for an investment, then you can go to Japan with my blessing. Take all the time you need there. No deadline. Your work can wait for however long it needs to. Does that sound like a fair bargain?”

 

               Maxim held out his hand and, after a moment of brief introspection, Victor shook it.

 

               “Yes, that sounds fair to me.”

 

               “Make me proud, Vitya.”

 

~

 

               Victor is running late.

 

               He had overslept. Victor never overslept, and, yet here he was, literally sprinting down the road after having abandoned his cab in the middle of traffic because he hadn’t heard his alarm go off this morning. Or maybe he hadn’t even set it? Victor wasn’t sure. All he remembered was staying up late staring at last minute plane tickets until his eyes crossed and the world blurred.

 

               In retrospect he should have been focusing more on the presentation he was supposed to be giving… Oh, five minutes ago. At least, if he was going to be late then he could be prepared, but he hadn’t even done that.

 

               Victor grabbed his phone from out of his pocket, cursing the fact that he hadn’t thought to ask his father for the client’s contact information before he’d bolted out of the house that morning.

 

               That meant he was late, unprepared, and had no way to inform the prospective client of any of those things.

 

               This was not the way Victor had intended for this day to go.

 

               He knew his father would let him out of his deal if needed, but Victor never had liked to lose a wager. Even though he was going to end up where he wanted to be regardless of what happened today, he wanted to head back to Yuri in victory, not defeat. Maybe even prove to himself a little that his father’s trust had been well placed.

 

               How far away was this place?

 

               Victor was out of breath and sweaty under his coat despite the biting winter wind by the time he found the place he was looking for. He paused in the lobby and straighten his hair, caught his breath, and took a moment to gauge his surrounding while allowing his heart a chance to return to its normal rhythm. Victor grabbed a scrap of paper from out of his coat pocket and double checked the address.

 

               Confirmed this was in the right place, he looked around more intently. This place seemed to be a hotel, and one that looked as though it had been nice once upon a time, but had been worn down and never buffed back up again. There were one or two people that could have been guests hanging around in the lobby, but other than that, there was only one employee behind the counter.

 

               Victor approached the young man scrolling through his phone behind the counter. He cleared his throat to his get attention.

 

               “Can I help you?” The man didn’t even look up from what he was doing to acknowledge Victor’s presence. No wonder whoever owned this place was wanting to sell. With service like that Victor wasn’t surprised at all by the apparent lack of guests.

 

               “I’m supposed to be meeting someone in the conference room here. Can you tell me where that is?” The man grunted and pointed toward a sign behind him. Victor could make out the words ‘Conference Room’ and an arrow point off to the right. “Thank you.”

 

               “It’s the last door on the left!” The man called after him as Victor rushed down the hall.

 

               He was now fifteen minutes late and he could only hope that whoever he was meeting hadn’t given up on him and left. The last thing he wanted to do was disappoint his father before running off to Japan to be with Yuri. He would still go, that much he was certain of, but it would be nice to go with his father’s blessing as opposed to running away from his father’s ire.

 

               Victor was in such a hurry he didn’t notice someone attempting to step out of the room right as he was trying to burst in.

 

               He collided against a solid body and they bounced off each other, Victor instantly going to spit out apologies.

 

               “Oh, no! I am so sorry. I know I’m late and I should have been looking where I was going and…”

 

               “We really have to stop bumping into each other like this.”

 

               Victor’s entire world ground to a halt as he registered those words and paired them with the man standing in front of him, pink flush spread across tanned cheeks and a hand nervously rubbing the back of his neck. Dark hair, brown eyes, blue glasses…

 

               “Yuri!”

 

               Victor didn’t wait before throwing his arms around the other man, revealing in the feeling of that familiar body in his arms. He felt hands clutching at the coat on his back and Victor buried his fair in Yuri’s soft hair, laughing and crying at the same time.

 

               “Vitya.” Yuri’s face was pressed into his shoulder, the glasses pinching against the skin of Victor’s neck, but he didn’t care. Didn’t ever care how or why Yuri was here because none of that mattered. “Vitya, I can’t breathe…”

 

               “Sorry, sorry.” Victor loosened his grasp so that Yuri could pull back enough to look up into his face. They were both grinning so wide Victor could feel his jaw strain under the effort. “How are you here? _Why_ are you here? Am I dreaming?”

 

               “You’re not dreaming.” Yuri tangled his fingers in the short hairs at the nape of Victor’s neck and pulled him down into a deep kiss, as though to prove his point. Victor groaned into his fiancé’s mouth, sliding his hands down Yuri’s body to grip at his hips so tightly, Victor wouldn’t be surprised to find bruises there later. They separated their lips, but left their foreheads pressed together. “I wanted to tell you so badly, but I didn’t want to get your hopes up. I couldn’t have lived with myself if everything fell through…”

 

               “What? If what fell through?” Victor wasn’t sure if it was the joy at having Yuri real and here and so very _present_ that was causing him to not be able to follow what Yuri was trying to say, or if Yuri really wasn’t explaining himself well at all. “Yuri, what are you talking about.”

 

               “The hotel. This hotel. Mari and I are buying it. To expand our brand into Russia.” Yuri pulled back so there was some space between their faces and he could look into Victor’s eyes. “I’m the client you’re supposed to be meeting.”

 

               “You are?” Victor couldn’t believe it. “Well, in that case, I’m going to have to be really convincing with my presentation. Fair warning, I’m probably going to way overplay my hand and give you as many offers as it takes until I find one you can’t refuse. Anything to make sure you stay here.”

 

               “As much as I would love to see that… It’s not really necessary. We signed the contracts before I left Japan. We been working on it for months…” Yuri must have seen something in Victor’s face that concerned him because his flush intensified and his next word came out soft and timid, more of a question than a statement. “Surprise?”

 

               Victor didn’t have any words. Instead he pulled Yuri close to him, crushing their bodies together once more.

 

               They stayed locked together for a long moment, just drinking in the fact that they were together again. It was Victor that broke the silence.

 

               “This is the best surprise I’ve ever gotten.” He pressed a kiss to Yuri’s forehead. “Does this mean you’re going to stay?”

 

               “Only if you want me to.”

 

               “Yuri, I was two hours away from getting on a plane and flying to you, responsibilities be damned. Yes, I want you here. I want you anywhere. Everywhere. So long as that place is with me.” He felt more than heard Yuri’s laugh that time. “What I should be asking is if you are okay with being here. We aren’t exactly close to your home, or your business, Phichit, your family….”

 

               “There’s not much that can be done about my family.” They had yet to disentangle their arms from around each other, but they had move their faces back again so they could look at each other instead of speaking into coat collars. “But Phichit will be coming here next week. I think he’s bringing Chris with him, too. At least, he left for Switzerland a few days ago in the hopes of convincing him to come… Not that I suspect Chris will say no…”

 

               “You mean Phichit is with Chris right now?” Yuri nodded, brows furrowed as though he were concerned he might have said the wrong thing. “You mean to tell me, Phichit has been with Chris for days now, which means Chris has known about this little scheme of yours for days now and _he didn’t tell me_?”

 

               “I should hope not. It would have ruined the surprise.” Yuri rolled his eyes and Victor scoffed in response. “Don’t be mad at Chris. I swore them both to secrecy.”

 

               “Well, I can’t be mad at you.” Victor honestly wasn’t mad at anyone. He wasn’t sure he was capable of being angry about anything in that moment. “I’ll forgive them eventually. Right now the most important thing is you. It’s always you.”

 

               “Where’s your things?” Victor had suddenly noticed a clear lack of baggage. “Are you staying in the hotel?”

 

               “No… I…” Yuri was turning red again and was suddenly having difficulty looking Victor in the eye. “I may have used the key you gave me to drop my things off at your flat. I thought… I thought I might stay there. With you? I know I shouldn’t have assumed and if I would be an imposition…”

 

               Victor cut him off with a kiss.

 

               “The last thing you will ever be to me is an imposition. Come on, let’s go. We have a lot of catching up to do.”

 

               And so they went, arm in arm.

 

               They were finally going home.

 

               Together.


	38. Chapter 38

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No, you aren't reading that chapter counter wrong. It DOES say '38/38'!
> 
> SURPRISE EPILOGUE!
> 
> I couldn't leave this world without writing their wedding!
> 
> A massive thank you to everyone who has been reading this and who have left a comment or kudos! And a special thank you to my best friend for putting up with my crazy for these past two months! Trust me, there was a lot of crazy to go around.
> 
> I'm not done yet! I do have some little drabbles and deleted scenes from Language Barriers that didn't quite make it into the actual story. If there's any interest, I may be posting them as their own separate collection!
> 
> Also, I've already been outlining my next multi-chapter Yuri on Ice fic! It will be called 'The Selection' and will be set in the world from the series of books of the same name by Kiera Cass. So if Royal Arranged Marriage AUs and The Bachelor is your jam, keep an eye out! I'm going to take a week or so off to recharge, but I'll have it posted before the month is out!
> 
> I LOVE YOU ALL!

April (1 year and 3 months later) – Japan

 

               Victor had his laptop set up on the coffee table in front of their couch in the living room of the flat in St. Petersburg. Yuri was hurrying around behind him searching through the various rooms in order to make sure they hadn’t missed packing something important. Victor left him to it. When Yuri was in a mood like this he knew he would only get in the way and do more harm than good.

 

               “You’re bringing them with you when you come, right?” Victor asked, hoping his didn’t sound as nervous as he felt. On the screen in front of him, Sara laughed.

 

               “Yes, we’re bringing them with us when we come. I wouldn’t trust shipping these babies to you.” Sara grinned. “It means we aren’t going to have a lot of time to make any adjustments if needed, but I’d prefer that than running the risk of them getting lost or getting held up in customs and not making it on time. Oh, Yuri!”

 

               Sara must have seen Yuri flit behind him from a brief second on yet another round through the room. “Yuri! You haven’t even seen them yet! Come here and let me show you! If you don’t like the cut or color there’s still some time for me to make changes before we leave.”

 

               “If you designed them, I’m sure they are perfect, Sara.” Yuri paused, leaning over Victor’s shoulder for a moment. “Thank you again for doing this. I hope it wasn’t too much of a bother…”

 

               “Design tuxedos for my good friends’ wedding, a bother? Never. I was happy to do it.” Victor saw Yuri nod in the little box in the corner of the screen that showed their side of the video feed and then Yuri was gone, off to his nervous pacing. “Yuri, are you sure you don’t have an opinion?”

 

               “So long as we’re actually getting married, Yuri doesn’t care what color the suits are. Dark, light, pastel, naked…”

 

                “Not naked.”

 

               “Fine, half-naked…”

 

               “Victor!”

 

               “I take it back. Yuri’s one condition is that we be fully clothed.”

 

               Sara was now laughing so hard there were tears at the corners of her eyes. Victor felt his fiancé lean against his back, and his face popped back up on the screen. He looked harried, but he was smiling and he placed a kiss to the top of Victor’s head almost like a silent apology.

 

               “Fully clothed is definitely something I can do.” Sara wiped away her tears, focusing again on the matter at hand.

 

               “Thank you again, Sara. Honestly. It means a lot to us.” Yuri poked Victor in the shoulder. “Victor, we have to go or we’re going to be late. We still need to drop Makka off at the boarders before we meet your parents and Chris and Phichit at the airport.”

 

               “You’re right. Give me one minute and I’ll be ready.” Yuri gave him another kiss, this one on the cheek and disappeared back into their bedroom, probably checking one last time to make sure they had all Makkachin’s toys and everything they would need for their own trip. “We’ll see you in two days?”

 

               “I can’t believe you are finally getting married!” Sara clapped her hands together. “I thought you would have done it forever ago.”

 

               “Trust me, it was not for lack of desire. We’ve been so busy getting the new hotel up and running here and then we wanted to make sure to plan a time when everyone could make it…” Victor sighed dramatically. “This has been the longest year of my life.”

 

               “It’s almost over, you big drama queen.” Victor squawked in indignation, and he swore he heard a chuckle coming somewhere from the bedroom. On Sara’s end she turned her head for a moment, looking down at something Victor couldn’t see. “Alright, my assistant just texted me. I have to go back to work now. I can’t wait to see you again!”

 

               “We can’t wait to see you either! Have a safe trip and call us if you need us!”

 

               They exchanged hasty goodbyes and Victor stowed his laptop in its bag, standing up and stretching before slinging it over his shoulder and moving to where Yuri was now bent over by the front door, clipping the snaps on Makkachin’s harness while the poodle wiggled and squirmed and wagged his tail so hard it thumps loudly against the wall.

 

               “Can you grab the big suitcase? I left it behind the couch.” Victor goes to do as Yuri asks, grunting and almost falling flat on his face as the bag is far heavier than he anticipated.

 

               “What’s in this thing? Your rock collection?”

 

               “Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot that you might have trouble lifting such heavy things in your old age. Here, let me get it.” Yuri steps forward as though he is going to take the bag from Victor’s hands and Victor’s pull it back out of reach.

 

               “Twenty-five is _not_ old.” Ignoring his fiancé’s knowing smirk, Victor schooled his features to hide any signs of strain. “You’re only a year younger than I am.”

 

               Yuri laughs at his pout, but this time when he reaches out to take the bag, Victor lets him have it, accepting Makkachin’s leash in return.

 

               “Let’s go get married.”

 

~

 

               Once they make it to Hasetsu, everything turns into a whirlwind of preparation.

 

               From the moment they step off the train to find Minako waiting for them, enveloping Yuri in a tight hug and chattering away in Japanese about how proud she is of him and how she always knew he had it in him, they don’t get a second alone.

 

               Minako and Victor’s parents pile all the bags and themselves into Minako’s car and drive off, leaving the four men behind to walk. It’s pleasant day, warmer than it usually would be, but with a breeze that still carries a hint of winter as the weather fades gently into spring.

 

               Once they reach the end, they are swept up in an impromptu party. Apparently Yuri’s parents have invited half of Hasetsu for a pre-wedding lunch and Yuri and Victor spend most of their time being passed from group to group.

 

               At least it gives Victor a chance to keep polishing his Japanese.

 

               The rest of their friends begin to trickle in over the next few days. First Sara, Isabella, and JJ arrive from Spain, Sara toting the custom suits she’d designed for them. They spent most of the morning the arrive trying on the suits for a last minute fitting.

 

               Separately, of course. Yuri might not have an opinion, but Victor is superstitious and wants the first time he sees his future husband in the outfit to be on their wedding day. Yuri rolls his eyes and calls him a sap, but he doesn’t push and the next time they get together is at lunch.

 

               They’re sitting in the restaurant of the inn, reminiscing about JJ and Isabella’s wedding in Paris last summer when Chris and Phichit show up with Gung Hong, fresh off a plane from Beijing.

 

               The next day Leo arrives, and most of their friends go for a walk around town with Phichit to guide them while Victor and Yuri meet with Yuri’s parents and the catering company. While Yuri’s mother wants to do most of the cooking in house with herself and her staff, she’d had to admit they might need some help when it came to some of the appetizers as they would need the extra hands the caterers would provide in the way of wait staff.

 

               When Seung-Gil and his husband arrive that night, they only have the energy for a few polite hellos and a round of brief toasts before they all fall into bed exhausted.

 

               “Yuri!” Despite the late night and all the running back and forth they’d been doing over the past few days, Victor finds he still can’t sleep in. For one, he’s still a consummate morning person even under these conditions. For another, he’s too excited to sleep. In his enthusiasm, he pulls the blankets Yuri is wrapped in a little too hard and his fiancé tumbled to the floor with a muffled curse. “Two more days, Yuri! Two more days.”

 

               Yuri groans and pushes himself up into a sitting position, rubbing the sleep from his eyes with one hand and where his hip had hit the ground with his other. “You’re not going to make it another two days if you toss me out of bed again.”

 

               “Sorry, sorry. You know how I get when I’m excited.” As a show of good faith, Victor plops down onto the floor and practically pulls Yuri into his lap. “I still can’t believe this is really happening. Finally. In two days!”

 

               “In two days.” Yuri echoes, clearly not awake enough for any true cognitive thinking. He allows himself to be held for a moment, leaning into Victor’s chest as he strokes his hair. Victor can tell the exact moment Yuri’s brain comes back online as the Japanese man tenses in his lap. “Shit, Vitya. What time is it? We’re supposed to meet the florist at ten…”

 

               “It’s half past eight, my love.” That seems to be enough to cause Yuri to relax and slump back against Victor’s body with a tight sigh. “We need to get some breakfast and by the time we’re done with that, I’ll bet Michele and Emil will be here from the airport.”

 

               “Mmmm. I made sure their room was ready last night before we went to bed. Mari knows which one it is.” Yuri yawns and buries his nose in the dip at the base of Victor’s throat. “And Otabeck’s room. It’s ready, too. Mari knows.”

 

               “I’m sure she does, but we still need to go to breakfast.” Not that Victor really wants to move. It’s only the thought of the reward he’s going to get once this is all over and he is married to the love of his life at long last that prompts him into motion. Yuri grumbles in Japanese under his breath, but he allows himself to be pulled to his feet. “Come on, let’s get dressed and get some food in us and then we can worry about our guests and the florist and everything else.”

 

               “Five more minutes?”

 

               “Yuri…” Victor whines and Yuri tries to hide his grin, accepting the glasses Victor has grabbed from the bedside table and putting them on. “Breakfast?”

 

               “Breakfast.”

 

~

 

               Yurio is the last to arrive the day before the ceremony. Victor offers to rendezvous with him at the train station. Minako’s car has been pressed into service ferrying people back and forth between the inn where the reception is to be held and the beach where the ceremony will be as they hurry to put together as much as they can the day before so there will be less to do in the morning. The Nishigori’s van is also taken, they have offered to accompany Otabeck to the local post office in order to pick up the DJ equipment he’d shipped and ensure it makes it back to the inn in one piece and Yuri is playing translator between Victor’s parents and his own as they trying to sort out the seating arrangement for the reception.

 

               Not that Victor isn’t glad to do it. He just wishes he’d thought to grab someone to accompany him.

 

               “You couldn’t have sent literally anyone else to come get me?” Yurio snaps as he catches sight of Victor waiting for him on the other side of the turnstiles that lead to the exit. “Every single person other than you was busy?”

 

               “JJ was free, but I thought you might prefer me over him… Even if only a little bit.” By now, Victor knew that Yurio’s gruffness was just his default states and not a true approximation of how he felt about any given situation. Victor reach out to grab one of Yurio’s bags, slinging it over his shoulder as they turned to walk out of the station and up the road. “How was your flight?”

 

               “Boring as fuck. Like they all are.” Yurio pauses in order to raise his arms over his head and stretch, grabbing the handle of his rolling bag and jogging a few steps to catch up with Victor’s longer legs.

 

               “And Berlin?” Victor was pretty sure that’s where the Bolshoi was touring this month, but he wasn’t entirely sure. Yuri always had been the better of the two of them when it came to keeping up with schedules and important dates.

 

               “German.” Well, Yurio never had been once to mince words. “We’ll be back in Moscow for a few weeks next month. Will you be back in St. Petersburg by then? I only ask because I need to know if you want me to reserve tickets or not.”

 

               “I’ll have to check with Yuri, but I think so.” Victor taps a finger against his lips as he tries to recall their schedule, but, as usual, he comes up blank. “We’re looking to move to Sochi in the summer. The hotel in St. Petersburg is in the black now and Yuri and Mari are looking at a few different sites that might make excellent candidates for a new resort. What about you? Find anything when you were skulking around San Francisco?”

 

               “I don’t have any idea what you’re fucking talking about.” Yurio turned his head away from Victor. “I was only in California for my birthday.”

 

               “Really? That’s the only reason?” Victor raised an eyebrow and Yurio scowled and kicked a loose rock so that it skittered across the pavement and off into the grass at the side. “We all saw the Instagram pictures, Yurio. The internet is forever.”

 

               “I may or may not have spent some time at the San Francisco Ballet.” Yurio looked Victor now, eyes flashing with something that he was sure was not entirely rage. “They also may or may not have an opening for a male soloist next season. Like I said, long flights are boring. Is it really so fucking hard to believe that after almost two and a half years of traveling, I might be done with it?”

 

               “So it has _nothing_ to do with Otabeck moving his recording studio to San Francisco… Ouch!”

 

               To be fair, that time he had probably deserved that kick to the shin.

 

~

 

               The night before the wedding, they all ended up in the hot springs together. Friends and family alike.

 

               Yuri’s parents had blocked off the springs for the evening, and had held one of the function banquet rooms for their party. Without fear of being interrupted or scandalizing any guests, everyone was relaxing and having a good time.

 

               Victor could hear the giggles and conversations of the girls from the other the side of the wooden wall that separated the men’s bathing area from the women’s, and every so often someone would call out to someone else from the other side, keeping the two parties connected even if they couldn’t bathe together.

 

               Someone, probably Chris, had convinced Yuri’s father to bring out several trays specially designed to float on top of the water and they were pushing them around from person to person. The drink of choice for the evening seemed to be saké, but Victor was sure he tasted some Cheongju in one of the ceramic cups.

 

               In the interest of not being completely hungover tomorrow for what was supposed to be the best day of his life, Victor was drinking in moderation only and Yuri wasn’t drinking at all.

 

               Some of the others… Well, some of the others might have had a little too much…

 

               “Does anyone else think it’s totally crazy that we are all literally naked right now?” Michele was definitely one of those who’d had too much. “Like, we don’t even have towels or anything! Oh my god! This really _is_ a naked party!”

 

               “Okay, no one let Michele drink anything else.” Emil pat the smaller Italian on the top of the head and completely ignored the tirade in the man’s native language that he got for his troubles.

 

               JJ laughed loudly as from the female’s side they heard Isabella’s voice. “Well, he’s not wrong!”

 

               Victor noticed Yuri’s father ask him something quietly. Yuri shook his head and whispered back, causing Toshiya to break out into boisterous laughter.

 

               “Everything alright, darling?” His father appeased and now carrying on a lively conversation with Chris and Phichit, Yuri had been able to turn back to Victor.

 

               “It’s fine. He just wanted to know what Michele was going on about.” Yuri explained. “He also might have said something about not thinking foreigners would be such lightweights, but I don’t think we should translate that for anyone else. I don’t want anyone to take it as a challenge.”

 

               “Some of them definitely would.” Victor agreed. He allowed the warm water to sink into his muscles and leant back against a rock, Yuri a respectable distance at his side. “Are you ready for tomorrow?”

 

               “I don’t think I’ve ever been more ready for something in my entire life.” Victor felt Yuri grab his hand under the water. For the time being it seemed as though their friends and family were more than happy to ignore them in favor of conversing with each other.

 

               Victor took a moment to look around. His father was speaking in Russian with Yurio and Otabeck, the three of them discussing a performance of the Mariinsky Ballet his father had attended in December. Yuri’s father was still having a patchwork conversation with Chris and Phichit, the Thai man running translation and all three looked happy to be there. He heard his mother’s voice drifting through the night air from the other side of the divider as she entertained Sara, Isabella, Hiroko, and Mari with a story from Victor’s childhood.

 

               Even the rest of the group were boisterous and full of good cheer, from Seung-Gil and his husband talking to Guang Hong about a new art exhibit that had opened in Seoul, to Leo and Emil who were trying to get Michele to stop attempting to climb out of the pool and make a break for the pile of towels they had left by the entryway.

 

               “It’s perfect.”

 

               Yuri made a small noise on confusion and turned those beautiful brown eyes up at Victor, causing his heart to squeeze painfully in his chest.

 

               “All of this. This week. This evening. Tomorrow… You. Perfect.”

 

               Victor half expected Yuri to protest at being called perfect. He had been better at accepting Victor’s constant stream of compliments, but every so often he would take a step back into the shy and nervous Yuri he’d been when they first met.

 

               Instead, Yuri surprised him yet again.

 

               “No… _We’re_ perfect.”

 

~

 

               For what had to be the first time in his life, Yuri woke up before the sun, without an alarm, and without any real reason to be up so early.

 

               He’d even beaten Victor awake and that _never_ happened.

 

               Lying there in the semi-darkness, he knew why, too. Yuri was impressed he’d even been able to sleep at all the night before, sheer exhaustion and the sound of Victor’s steady heartbeat in his ear the only things drawing him down into sleep. It was like his very bones were vibrating with anticipation.

 

               It took him a few moments to recognize it was a good panic and not a bad one. Today was the day he was getting married. To Victor. How he had managed that, he wasn’t sure, but he knew this was the one decision in his life he was never going to regret.

 

               Yuri watched the steady rise and fall of Victor’s chest for what felt like forever. The way his silver lashes shone against pale cheeks in the dim lighting coming in through the window from a street lamp down the road. His hair was messy and tangled and the fringe of his bangs were lying across most of his face. With each breath, a few tendrils close to his nose swayed and then fell still until the next breath disturbed them again.

 

               This was going to be his life now. No, this already _was_ his life. It hadn’t been easy. Those first few week in St. Petersburg had been full of misunderstandings as they tried to get their bearings around each other again, but Yuri had found living together clicked back into place fairly easily once they regained their sea legs. The past year had been the best one of his life. Even better than the trip that had led them to each other.

 

               And it was going to keep happening, over and over again. Waking up with Victor, going to bed at his side. Spontaneous lunch dates and jogging with Makkachin in the evenings. No amount of sunset gondola rides or surprise amusement park dates or dancing on a Barcelona beach could be better than the day to day life they shared.

 

               It must have been half an hour after Yuri woke up that he felt Victor stir.

 

               “Good morning, my love.”

 

               “Good morning, Vitya.”

 

               “Today’s the day?”

 

               “Today is the day.”

 

~

 

               Victor couldn’t stop fidgeting.

 

               How could he be blamed for it when, in just ten minutes time, he was going to walk down a makeshift aisle on the beach, underneath the cherry blossoms, to pledge his life to the man he loved?

 

               The time seemed to pass too slowly, then too quickly, and then not all. He paced, adjusted the cuffs of his dove grey suit, Sara really had outdone herself as the color of the jacket and the deep blue accents of the silk tie and waist coat paired perfectly, and then paced again just for good measure. He was sure Chris was saying something to him, but languages were beyond him at the moment and there was a buzzing in his ears like a hive of bees had set up a home right behind his eardrum.

 

               Besides, he was sure Chris was just trying to tell him to calm down again, and how was he supposed to be calm when he was marrying Yuri Katsuki in four minutes?

 

               Then it was time.

 

               They had agreed to meet at the head of the aisle and walk down together. As equals.

 

               All it took was seeing Yuri walking towards him and where they were supposed to meet and continue on together and Victor felt tears begin to stream down his face. Hair slicked back, glasses gone, tan skin against the crisp white shirt under his matching waistcoat and dove grey jacket. He couldn’t help himself. Instead of taking Yuri’s arm like he was supposed to, he grabbed Yuri and pulled him tight in a hug.

 

               “Vitya.” Yuri whispered in his ear and he shivered as he heard the other man’s voice crack. “Vitya, if you keep this up I’m going to cry and then I’ll lose my contacts and I won’t be able to see anything at all.”

 

               Victor laughed and pulled back offering his arm for Yuri to take with a bright smile. “Then I’ll just have to be the one to make sure you get to where you need to go today. It is probably well beyond my turn, after all.”

 

               “Mmmm… Yes, but then I wouldn’t be able to see you, either, and I don’t want to miss a second of this.”

 

               It took Phichit coughing loudly from the altar to remind them that they needed to actually walk to get to where they needed to be.

 

               Despite Victor’s best efforts to pay attention so he could remember every detail, the ceremony passed by in a blur. As they exchanged their vows and moved their rings from their right hand to their left, Victor lost the battle against his tears, and Yuri did the same. They were practically sobbing by the time they were told to share their first kiss as a married couple and their lips tasted of salt that had nothing to do with the sea breeze.

 

               As they walked back up the aisle to the cheering of the people they cared about the most in the world, Victor couldn’t imagine a time when he had ever been happier.

 

~

 

               The reception was exactly how Victor has envisioned it would be. Fairy lights in the trees surrounding the inn. The doors thrown open wide for people to come and go as they pleased. The banquet rooms had been left open for people to help themselves to Hiroko’s cooking and the main restaurant space had been transformed into a dance floor with silver, gold, and blue tulle hanging from the walls.

 

               Victor couldn’t take his eyes off his new husband. No matter where they were in the room, or who they were talking to, Victor couldn’t see anyone or anything else. Any time they had to part from each other, he would naturally gravitate back to Yuri’s side.

 

               While the ceremony had been a blur, the reception was crisp and clear. Every dance they shared, the toasts, the cake, every single second was engrained into Victor’s mind. The way Yuri felt pressed close against. The sound of his laughter as they spun around in the center of the dance floor until the collapsed into each other, too dizzy to stand straight. How Yuri pouted when Victor purposefully hit him in the nose with a piece of cake and left a smudge of frosting that he quickly licked off.

 

               Phichit found them tucked away in a corner resting their feet at one point, throwing himself into his friend arms and squealing with joy.

 

               “Oh my god! I cannot believe my best friend is finally married!” Phichit released Yuri and launched himself on Victor next, hugging him so tight he was worried about all the oxygen being crushed from his lungs. “The ceremony… It was so beautiful! Not a dry eye in the house!”

 

               “Thank you.” Yuri leant against Victor’s side as soon as Phichit released him. “Thank you for everything you did to help get today ready. And for being the world’s best, best man.”

 

               “Ah, I think Chris might have something to say about that, but you are very welcome.” Phichit pulled out his phone and spun around, holding it up to take what must have been the millionth selfie of the night. “For real, though. The whole thing was just so perfect… Though I’m surprised you got Victor to agree to use traditional vows instead of writing your own.”

 

               “Phichit… You know how Victor gets when he goes off book. You should be thanking me, really. I saved you from a two hour soliloquy about how the way I brush my teeth makes his heart flutter. Trust me I did you all a favor.”

 

               “Yeah, that sounds like a good call.” Phichit giggled as Victor turned towards his husband in full on pout mode.

 

               “ _Yuri_. You know the monologue about your teeth was only going to be twenty minutes. The bulk of the vows was going to be taken up by waxing poetic about the way the moonlight shines in your hair at night and that adorable little wrinkle you get between your eyebrows when you think I’m being too dramatic… Oh! Yes! That’s the one!”

 

               “Victor…” Yuri’s tones might have held a hint of warning to it, but his expression remained soft and his grin never wavered.

 

               “Two years later and you are still somehow the cutest couple in the room at all times.” Phichit shook his head. “You have got to let me in on the secret of how you do it.”

 

               “No secret. It’s love.” Victor chirped.

 

               “Speaking of love… Chris agreed to move to Sochi with us this summer?” Yuri asked, and Victor leaned forward in time with his husband, equally intent on getting the answer as well. “I know you were holding off on bringing it up until we had some more solid plans, but…”

 

               “Well, I hope he’ll come with me. There is something I want to do first, before I ask him about Sochi.” Phichit took a deep breath and glanced around to make sure no one was paying any attention to this back corner. The coast was clear and he leaned forward as well. “I’m going to wait until you two go off on your honeymoon so I don’t take up too much of your spotlight, but I bought something special the other week. I think it’s time to put a ring on it.”

 

               “Phichit! That’s wonderful!” Victor shouted, completely forgetting that he maybe should have been quieter with his exclamation until both Phichit and Yuri shushed him.

 

               That didn’t stop either of them from drawing Phichit in for a group hug.

 

               “He’s going to say ‘yes’. I know he will.” Yuri muttered as the parted. “You’ll have to tell me all about when we get back. I’m going to want every single detail.”

 

               “You will be the first to hear all about it, I promise!” Phichit crossed his heart with his fingers. “Where are you going on your honeymoon, by the way. I don’t recall you ever saying exactly where.”

 

               “Somewhere not too far from here actually. I think we’ve had plenty of world travel to last us for the time being.” Victor slipped his arm around Yuri’s waist and pulled the other man close to him. “Besides, I don’t think I could stand a long plane ride right now, right darling?”

 

               “Right.” Yuri didn’t hesitate to tip his head back and receive the kiss Victor placed on his lips.

 

               Even over the loud music, Victor could still hear the shutter sound from Phichit’s phone.

 

               He was definitely going to have to stalk Instagram and find that picture later.

 

               As fun as it was to celebrate with their loved ones, the night was growing old and Victor was getting impatient to have his groom all to himself. After a week of intense preparations, he felt like they more than deserved some time alone.

 

               They found Victor and Yuri’s parents in one of the banquet rooms, Mari sitting between them and helping to translate where Hiroko and Toshiya’s English failed them. They exchanged hugs and more congratulations before excusing themselves, leaving instructions with their parents to tell everyone goodbye on their behalf. While Victor might not have cared about leaving with fanfare and confetti, Yuri looked dead on his feet, so Victor decided a quiet and stealthy retreat was in order.

 

               They slipped out the back and made their way down the beach, using the lights from their phone to guide them.

 

               They spent the three kilometer walk in content silence, Victor more focus on Yuri that where his feet were, causing them to trip a few times and almost go down to their knees in the sand once or twice before they came to a gravel path tucked away from the shoreline. Victor led the way up the path and fished into his breast pocket to pull out the key he’d stashed there earlier in the evening.

 

               He let them in and pulled Yuri into the center of the cozy living room.

 

               “I still can’t believe we managed to find this place.” Yuri’s voice cut through the air and settled at the base of Victor’s heart. Yuri rests his head on Victor’s shoulder as the taller man held him close, reveling in the feeling of their two heart beating side by side. “It’s going to be nice to have our own place to stay when we visit.”

 

               “It was your brilliant idea. I just found a realtor that could make it happen.” They were swaying now, dancing to music that could be heard only in their own heads.

 

               “You were the one that suggested Sochi though. Get us closer to Japan.”

 

               “You miss it here. You didn’t say it, but I could tell.” Victor kissed Yuri then. Gently. As though he was afraid they would both break into pieces if he used any more force. “For what it’s worth, I love it here, too.”

 

               “I do miss it sometimes, but it doesn’t matter where we end up.”

 

               “I’m always home so long as I’m with you.”


End file.
